WHERE  BONDS 
ARE    LOOSED 


NOVELS  BY  E.  L.  GRANT  WATSON 

WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 
THE  MAINLAND 


E^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 


WHERE  BONDS 
ARE    LOOSED 

BY   E.   L.  GRANT  WATSON 

PUBLISHED  "at    NEW    YORK 
BY   ALFRED   A.    KNOPF    1918 


'If  I  go  down  to  Hell 
Thou  art  there  also" 


COPYRIGHT,  1918,  BY 
ALFRED  A.  KXOPF,  Inc. 

Published  January,  1918 
Stctnd  Printing,   StfUmbtr,  1918 


v-i 


/zncilnh    /^/<Jrr)nu^ 


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^,<\^3<^ 


FEINTED   IN    THE   UNITED   STATES   OE   AMEKICA 


To 

EDWARD  THOMAS 


PREFACE 

It  has  been  maintained  by  Friedrich  Nietzsche 
that  a  man  writes  to  get  rid  of  his  thoughts.  This 
is  in  essence  true,  but  the  process  is  not  merely  one 
of  excretion.  Undoubtedly  the  writer  is  often  dis- 
tressingly conscious  of  being  too  full  of  chaotic 
impressions,  also  he  suffers  from  the  vagueness  of 
his  emotion.  Besides  wishing  for  relief  from  this 
pressure,  he  desires  to  make  crystalline  what  is 
amorphous  and  vague.  Each  such  re-crystalliza- 
tion marks  a  stage  of  development,  and  is  followed 
by  a  period  of  rest.  The  process  of  writing  be- 
sides being  excretory  is  also  formative  in  that  it 
changes  the  formless  to  the  crystalline.  It  might 
be  said  that  the  writer  becomes  subjective  that  his 
objectivity  may  ultimately  be  the  clearer.  He 
writes  that  he  may  find  his  own  thoughts.  In  the 
process,  experience  becomes  part  of  conscious 
knowledge.     Life  is  thus  made  deeper. 

In  this  book  a  picture  is  given  of  a  small  group 
of  men  and  women  who  for  the  greater  portion  of 
their  lives  have  lived  in  the  normal  surroundings 
of  material  interdependence  which  we  call  civiliza- 


PREFACE 

tion.  They  find  themselves  isolated  on  an  island, 
completely  cut  off  from  the  conserving  influence  of 
the  herd.  Their  natures  under  this  sudden  re- 
taxation  cannot  adjust  themselves  until  all  former 
habit  and  prejudice  have  been  burnt  away  by  the 
fires  of  suffering,  and  until  they  find  beneath  their 
feet  the  primal  foundation  of  individual  desire 
left  high  and  dry  in  the  ebb  of  all  past  valuations 
and  beliefs.  This  ultimate  realization  of  life  can 
come  only  to  the  more  primitive  individuals  of  the 
group;  the  more  complex  and  finely  adjusted  na- 
tures are  broken  in  the  process;  they  crumble  to 
pieces  together  with  all  that  they  have  lost. 

The  story  is  by  no  means  exceptional.  It  is 
typical.  Such  isolated  groups  of  people  exist  in 
hundreds  at  the  further  outposts  of  civilization. 
Their  fates,  though  showing  every  variety  of  de- 
tail, are  already  written.  Their  success  or  failure 
is  determined  by  the  relative  strength  of  their  in- 
dividual or  social  instinct. 

And  here  I  come  to  the  second  thesis  of  the  book. 
Life  can  survive  all  bludgeoning  provided  that  the 
individual  soul  is  so  violently  shaken  that  all  its 
old  valuations  fall  completely  away.  Out  of  the 
ruins,  life  naked  and  without  shame,  but  beautiful 
in  that  naked  vitality  can  rise  to  new  expression. 

Grant  Watson 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE 
LOOSED 

CHAPTER  I 

UNDER  the  iron  roof  the  heat  was  stifling. 
The  thermometer  registered  a  hundred 
and  ten  degrees  in  the  shade,  and  the 
metal  knives  and  forks  arranged  on  the  tables  in 
the  hotel  dining-room  were  unpleasantly  hot  to 
the  touch.  The  fans  flicked  slowly  to  and  fro, 
sending  a  faint  gust  of  air,  feeble  and  tepid,  to 
disturb  the  innumerable  flies  that  clung  to  the 
walls  and  ceiling  and  buzzed  incessantly  among 
the  rafters.  Although  it  was  midday,  and  the 
sun  was  shining  fiercely,  the  room  was  lit  by  elec- 
tric light,  for  the  windows  were  closed  and  dark- 
ened to  keep  out  the  dust  and  the  heat  of  the  hot 
wind  off  the  desert.  On  the  walls  were  oleographs 
and  coloured  prints;  these,  together  with  the  fes- 
toons of  pink  and  yellow  paper  that  decked  them, 
were  stained  brown  and  made  almost  unrecogniz- 
able by  the  droppings  of  flies  of  countless  genera- 
tions. 

II 


WHKRE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

Like  the  rest  of  the  hotel,  the  dining-room  was 
built  of  corrugated  iron ;  in  it  were  arranged  some 
fifteen  small  tables,  each  designed  to  seat  four 
diners.  About  thirty  men  were  engaged  in  eat- 
ing their  midday  meal.  They  spoke  little  save  to 
curse  at  the  heat,  and  their  voices  mixed  with  and 
were  drowned  by  the  loud  buzz  of  the  large  yel- 
low blow-flies  that  hovered  about  the  plates. 

In  and  out  between  the  tables  passed  two  capped 
and  aproned  girls,  who  looked  surprisingly  neat 
and  clean  by  comparison  with  the  rough  men  they 
served.  The  men  were  a  heterogeneous  crowd, 
comprising  miners,  prospectors  and  shepherds 
lately  come  from  the  bush.  They  were  dressed 
for  the  most  part  in  blue  dungarees  and  coloured 
shirts,  with  sleeves  rolled  up  to  the  elbows.  Here 
and  there  seated  amongst  them  were  two  or  three 
store-keepers  of  the  town  in  their  white  tropical 
suits.  Among  the  rougher-looking  of  the  men  was 
a  red-haired,  red-bearded  Englishman.  He  sat 
at  a  table  by  himself,  and  seemed  a  stranger,  for 
he  greeted  no  one.  Unlike  most  big  men,  he 
showed  in  his  face  no  signs  of  heaviness  or  slow- 
ness of  character;  on  the  contrary  his  irregular 
features  suggested  a  quick  and  impulsive  temper. 
His  bright  blue  eyes  and  trim  pointed  beard  gave 
him  a  look  at  once  pleasing  and  unusual,  and  there 
was  a  suggestion  of  smartness  in  spite  of  his  shirt- 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       13 

sleeves  and  baggy  trousers.  His  mouth  was  weak 
and  too  small  for  a  man  of  his  size.  Even  be- 
neath his  beard  it  could  be  seen  to  twist  down  at 
the  comers,   giving  a  suggestion  of  cruelty. 

Sherwin  had  knocked  about  in  the  Northern 
Territory  of  New  Ireland  for  the  last  two  years. 
He  had  tried  every  description  of  work,  had  been 
miner,  prospector,  sheep-shearer,  and  roustabout. 
He  and  his  brother,  sons  of  a  small  farmer  in  Eng- 
land, had  come  out  from  the  old  country,  partly  in 
the  hope  of  a  quick  fortune,  having  heard  extrava- 
gant stories  of  the  gold-fields,  and  partly  from 
love  of  adventure  and  new  experience.  The  two 
men  had  gone  straight  into  the  interior  and  there 
had  fallen  under  the  spell  of  the  bush,  had  been 
bitten  by  the  lust  for  gold,  by  the  hope  of  a  for- 
tune that  hung  always  so  tantalizingly  near,  that 
was  so  easily  within  the  bounds  of  the  possible  and 
yet  was  grasped  by  so  few.  They  had  endured 
many  hardships  and  spent  much  energy  and  all 
their  money  in  the  search,  and  then  had  been  com- 
pelled to  take  regularly  paid  occupation,  that  of- 
fered no  such  glorious  possibilities.  Later  they 
had  agreed  that  one  of  them  should  earn  regular 
wages  and  should  supply  the  other  with  money,  so 
that  he  should  be  able  to  continue  the  search. 
Any  gold  that  was  found  would  then  be  evenly 
divided.     It  had  fallen  to  the  red-haired  man. 


14      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

who  sat  in  the  stifling  atmosphere  of  the  hotel, 
to  be  the  wage-earner.  He  had  entered  willingly 
into  this  partnership,  and  could  trust  his  brother 
to  work  as  laboriously  as  he  would  himself. 
Lately  he  had  received  a  letter  giving  most  hope- 
ful accounts  of  the  country  in  which  his  brother 
was  working;  and  now,  in  spite  of  the  great  heat 
and  the  maddening  buzz  of  the  flies,  he  was  in  a 
pleasant  and  sanguine  mood.  His  own  immediate 
prospects  were  also  satisfactory.  He  had  lately 
travelled  to  Port  Kaimera  on  one  of  the  coasting 
steamers.  He  was  to  stay  there  for  a  couple  of 
days  and  then  was  going  North  with  a  gang  of 
sheep-shearers  bound  for  the  interior.  Sheep- 
shearing  was  a  job  he  thoroughly  understood,  and 
one  that  was  well  paid.  In  the  meanwhile  his 
brother  seemed  in  a  fair  way  to  making  a  find, 
and  then,  if  he  should  at  last  be  successful,  Sher- 
win  would  join  him  and  help  at  the  making  of 
the  fortune  that  had  so  long  been  their  dream. 

His  thoughts,  that  were  wandering  among  the 
promising  possibilities  of  an  elusive  future,  were 
suddenly  interrupted  by  the  arrival  of  a  drunken 
man,  who  staggered  across  the  room  and  sat  down 
with  a  grunt  and  a  lurch  in  the  chair  next  to  him. 
The  man  was  in  the  aggressive  and  quarrelsome 
stage  of  drunkenness,  when  any  trifle  serves  to 
pick  a  quarrel. 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       15 

''Good  day  to  yer,"  he  growled  out. 

''Good  day,''  said  Sherwin,  and  edged  himself 
and  his  chair  a  little  further  from  the  reek  of 
the  man's  breath. 

"What  yer  doin'  edgin'  away  like  that?  Ain't 
I  good  enough  to  sit  next  to  yer?"  He  paused  and 
looked  hard  at  Sherwin,  then,  summing  him  up, 
he  w^ent  on :  "Yer  bloody  Britisher,  think  yerself 
damned  superior.  What  do  yer  take  me  for? — 
a  bloody  aboriginee?" 

One  of  the  serving  girls  came  up  and  said  in 
a  voice  that  sounded  as  if  she  were  well  accus- 
tomed to  dealing  with  such  small  dissensions, 
"Now  then,  you  two,  don't  make  a  scrap  over 
nothing."  Then  to  the  new  arrival,  "Which  will 
you  'ave,  pork  or  mutton?" 

"Orl  right.  Miss,"  blustered  the  man,  raising 
himself  from  his  chair;  "I'll  settle  with  this  chap. 
I'll  teach  him  how  to  be'ave." 

Sherwin  was  conscious  that  several  of  the  men 
had  stopped  eating  their  dinners  and  were  watch- 
ing to  see  what  would  happen.  He  felt  his  skin 
tingle  and  knew  that  he  was  growing  angry.  He 
noticed  in  a  flash  of  annoyance  the  ugly,  distorted 
shape  of  the  white  glass  vase  that  stood  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  table ;  its  sides  were  encrusted  with  pink 
blobs  that  bore  a  faint  resemblance  to  strawberries. 
In  it  stood  a  bunch  of  tarnished  artificial  flowers. 


i6      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

The  dust  on  these  was  now  faintly  stirred  by  the 
breath  from  the  red,  lowering  face  that  bent  above 
them. 

"Well,  ain't  yer  got  anything  to  say?  Ain't 
I  good  enough  to  be  spoke  to?" 

**Sit  down,  and  don't  make  a  fuss,"  said  Sher- 
win;  "eat  your  dinner." 

The  next  moment  the  man  lurched  forward,  and 
a  heavy  hand  fell  with  a  splash  in  the  middle  of 
Sherwin's  plate.  "God  damn  you,  take  your 
hand  out  of  my  plate." 

As  Sherwin  jumped  up,  the  man's  right  hand 
swung  round  and  caught  him  a  stinging  blow  on 
the  ear.  Then,  seeing  red  for  a  moment,  Sherwin 
let  out  at  the  face  opposite.  The  man  fell  like 
a  pole-axed  beast,  and  lay  still  on  the  floor. 

Several  of  the  other  diners  had  jumped  to  their 
feet.  One  of  them  went  and  lifted  the  fallen  man, 
who  only  groaned  and  hung  limp  in  his  hands. 
"You  needn't  have  struck  him  so  hard,"  he  said. 
"Couldn't  you  see  he  was  drunk?  A  shove  would 
have  done." 

Sherwin  was  still  smarting  from  the  blow  and 
the  blood  was  singing  in  his  ears.  He  expressed 
a  wish  that  he  might  have  killed  the  man  or  any 
other  drunken  groper  that  interfered.  The  on- 
lookers had  now  for  the  most  part  become  silent. 
They  were  surprised  and  rather  contemptuous  at 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   17 

Sherwin's  outburst,  and  at  the  completeness  of  his 
anger.  There  was  something  perhaps  about  his 
red  beard  and  burly  figure  that  annoyed  them  and 
made  them  resent  this  stranger  who  had  lost  his 
temper  with  a  drunken  man  and  now  had  so  much 
to  say  for  himself. 

A  small  group  formed  about  the  stricken  man 
and  some  one  dabbed  his  face  with  cold  water. 
As  he  was  carried  out  he  was  sick  in  the  transit. 
Murmurs  of  indignation  were  heard  and  sneer- 
ing remarks  made  at  Sherwin's  expense.  Then 
a  big  dark  man,  who  had  sat  in  silence  till  now, 
got  up  from  his  chair  and  walked  across  to  Sher- 
win.  He  looked  round  to  see  if  his  audience  were 
with  him,  and  then  spoke  in  a  condescending, 
sneering  voice: 

*Tretty  easy  to  hit  a  man  when  he's  drunk;  no 
chance  of  his  hitting  you  back,  is  there?  Per- 
haps you  daren't  have  done  it  if  he  were  sober?" 

Sherwin  was  exasperated.  "What  do  you  ex- 
pect me  to  do?  Sit  still  and  smile?  Why,  he 
hit  me  first,  and  put  his  dirty  hand  in  my  plate." 

"Perhaps  you  wouldn't  have  hit  him  if  he  had 
been  sober,"  reiterated  the  dark  man. 

"What  are  you  driving  at?  What  do  you 
want?"  demanded  Sherwin. 

"Come  outside  and  I'll  soon  show  you." 

One  of  the  onlookers,  an  excitable,  wiry  little 


i8      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

fellow,  piped  in  a  shrill  voice,  ''That's  right,  Jim 
Shepherd,  teach  him  a  lesson.  Wipe  the  floor 
with  him." 

Sherwin  was  unpleasantly  conscious  that  he  was 
a  stranger  and  alone  amongst  feelings  that  were 
far  from  friendly.  He  didn't  want  to  fight  the 
big,  dark  man,  who  was  probably  an  old  hand  at 
a  game  where  he  had  little  experience.  No,  he 
didn't  want  to  fight.  He  felt  suddenly  afraid,  and 
was  ashamed  of  being  afraid. 

"I've  got  no  quarrel  with  you,  why  should  you 
quarrel  with  me?     Leave  me  alone." 

"Come  on,  d'yer  hear ! "  shouted  Shepherd,  seiz- 
ing the  front  of  his  shirt  and  dragging  him  a  step 
forward.  "Come  on,  cocky,  and  have  yer  head 
knocked  off!"  piped  the  excitable  little  man. 

As  he  walked  across  the  room,  Sherwin  knew 
that  he  was  white  and  trembling,  he  felt  sick  and 
annoyed,  and  was  vaguely  conscious  of  a  press  of 
men  round  him,  all  eager  to  see  the  fight  in  which 
he  was  to  take  part. 

Outside  the  drinking-saloon  was  a  large  cov- 
ered-in  court  in  which  were  arranged  divans  and 
deck  chairs.  On  the  other  side  of  the  court  were 
rows  of  bedrooms.  A  space  was  soon  cleared  in 
which  Sherwin  found  himself  face  to  face  with 
Jim  Shepherd.  Judging  by  appearances,  the  two 
men  were  evenly  enough  matched ;  but  one  of  them 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       19 

was  fighting  on  his  own  ground  and  of  his  own  in- 
clination, while  the  other  wished  himself  well  out 
of  it  and  felt  the  odds  to  be  against  him. 

"Put  'em  up,"  shouted  his  antagonist.  Sher- 
win  held  up  his  hands.  He  stood  almost  still, 
only  slightly  shifting  his  feet ;  in  front  of  him  he 
watched  Jim  Shepherd  dodging  up  and  down, 
then  with  a  feint  and  a  rush  came  the  attack.  He 
felt  his  head  jerked  back  and  suddenly  a  tre- 
mendous blow  on  the  mouth.  He  tasted  blood, 
felt  his  beard  to  be  moist  with  it  and  saw  red  stains 
upon  his  shirt.  A  voice  called,  "That's  the  style, 
Jim,  cut  his  mug  open."  Sherwin  jumped  back, 
recovering  his  balance.  His  antagonist  was  there 
close  in  front  of  him  again,  with  head  and  fists 
bobbing  up  and  down.  Then  rage  seemed  to  grip 
at  his  heart  and  to  swell  in  his  chest,  till  he  was 
almost  choked.  He  felt  that  his  face  was  twitch- 
ing uncontrollably,  that  the  corners  of  his  mouth 
were  drawn  down  as  if  he  were  going  to  cry.  A 
thin  voice  laughed  somewhere  infinitely  far  away. 
"Now  then,  Johnny,  swallow  yer  teeth  and  smile." 
Then  an  immeasurable  rage  swept  him  forward 
against  his  opponent. 

The  unexpectedness  and  fury  of  his  attack 
carried  them  both  to  the  other  side  of  the  court, 
up  against  the  iron  wall  of  the  saloon.  Then,  as 
through  a  red  mist,  he  saw  a  dark  head  pressed 


20      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

backward.  He  struck  at  it,  right  and  left,  half- 
arm  hits,  with  all  the  strength  of  a  man  inured 
to  the  hardships  of  the  bush  and  to  long  hours 
of  heavy  work.  In  front  of  him  the  head  jerked 
from  side  to  side;  sometimes  he  hit  it,  sometimes 
he  hit  the  iron  wall  behind,  but  mostly  he  hit  the 
dark,  blood-stained  face. 

When  he  was  pulled  off  by  half  a  dozen  strong 
hands,  the  head  hung  limply  and  the  body  of 
his  enemy  slid  sideways  into  a  heap.  Half  sob- 
bing, half  choking  with  excitement,  he  asked  if 
any  one  else  wanted  to  take  him  on.  Then,  sud- 
denly ashamed  of  his  boastfulness,  he  made  off 
towards  his  room. 

For  some  minutes  the  spectators  of  this  last 
scene  stood  about  in  groups  discussing  the  various 
points  shown  by  Sherwin  and  his  antagonist. 
Previous  brawls  were  remembered  and  compari- 
sons made.  There  came  about  a  marked  change 
of  feeling  in  Sherwin's  favour;  now  that  he  had 
proved  himself,  they  were  prepared  to  laugh  at  and 
rather  like  his  boastfulness  and  excitability.  In 
one  of  these  groups  was  a  small  fat  man  neatly 
dressed  in  a  well-cut  white  suit.  He  was  a  gov- 
ernment official,  and  was  at  that  moment  on  the 
lookout  for  an  overseer  and  stockman  for  an  island 
some  miles  from  the  mainland. 

Kanna  Island,  a  long  thin  stretch  of  limestone 


WHERE   BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      21 

rock,  covered  partially  by  sand-dunes  and  swept 
by  all  the  winds,  had  been  set  apart  as  a  Govern- 
ment Hospital  for  Sick  Natives,  and  Mr.  Stair 
had  been  directed  to  look  out  for  a  man  who 
would  look  after  stock,  and  who  could  if  neces- 
sary take  on  and  knock  to  pieces  any  refractory 
nigger.  In  Sherwin  he  saw  precisely  what  he 
needed.  A  man  with  that  amount  of  physical 
strength  and  nervous  force  should,  if  he  could 
gather  sufficient  self-assurance,  be  well  fitted  for 
the  work.  Besides,  being  an  Englishman,  he 
would  be  more  likely  to  take  up  work  involving 
loneliness  and  isolation,  such  work  as  a  New 
Irelander  would  naturally  shy  at.  There  was  no 
doubt  the  post  had  its  disadvantages,  and  he  might 
have  difficulties  in  finding  the  right  man.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  pay  was  high,  and  it  was  worth 
while  seeing  what  the  red-haired  fellow  had  to  say. 
He  hung  about,  waiting  for  Sherwin  to  make  his 
appearance. 

That  evening  found  the  two  men  seated  together 
in  the  private  bar,  drinking  whiskies  and  smoking 
cigars  provided  by  the  fat  man.  They  had  spent 
the  last  half  hour  together,  and  friendly  relations 
had  been  established  in  all  directions,  and  now 
Mr.  Stair  had  taken  him  aside  to  make  a  business 
proposition.  "You  don't  happen  to  be  out  of 
work,  do  you?     If  you  are,  I  can  put  you  in  the 


22      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

way  of  a  good  job.  A  good  job  with  high  pay. 
It's  just  the  thing  for  a  man  like  you.  There's 
nothing  against  it  save  that  you  may  be  a  bit  lonely 
at  first." 

"What  sort  of  a  job?"  asked  Sherwin. 

"I'll  tell  you  about  it.  I  daresay  you've  heard 
of  this  new  scheme  of  the  Government's  about 
making  a  native  hospital  on  Kanna  and  Fenton 
Islands.  The  idea  is  to  catch  all  the  sick  natives 
and  put  them  on  these  islands,  and  cure  them,  or 
anyway  prevent  them  spreading  their  diseases  to 
the  others.  The  women  are  to  be  on  Fenton 
Island  and  the  men  on  Kanna.  On  Kanna  they 
are  going  to  start  a  sheep  and  cattle  station ;  they 
want  some  one  to  look  after  it  and  at  the  same 
time  to  keep  discipline  among  the  natives.  A 
great  many  of  them  will  be  well  enough  to  work 
on  the  station  and  will  do  any  odd  jobs  that  the 
doctor  may  want  doing  for  the  hospital.  Don't 
be  in  a  hurry  to  say  whether  you'll  take  it  or 
whether  you  won't.  There's  good  pay,  three 
pounds  a  week  and  a  house,  a  good  house,  pro- 
vided and  food,  so  you'd  have  no  expenses,  and 
there's  a  native  servant  to  cook  for  you  and  look 
after  you.  Not  one  of  these  aborigines,  but  a 
Solomon  boy  who  can  talk  English  well  and  is 
a  good  cook.  Dr.  Hubbard  has  a  house  on  the 
island  and  will  spend  half  his  time  there  and 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   23 

half  on  Fenton,  where  the  Government  have  built 
a  big'  hospital,  and  put  in  a  couple  of  nurses. 
They  say  they're  going  to  build  a  big  place  on 
Kanna  Island  too,  so  you  may  not  be  long  with- 
out company." 

"What  about  the  natives?  Are  they  infec- 
tious?" asked  Sherwin. 

"Oh,  there's  no  fear  of  your  getting  anything. 
You'll  only  have  to  do  with  those  that  are  conva- 
lescent, to  see  they  do  their  work  and  that  sort  of 
thing.  Not  the  least  danger.  Don't  you  fret 
about  that,"  laughed  Mr.  Stair. 

Sherwin  was  silent  for  a  few  moments.  No 
doubt  the  offer  was  a  tempting  one.  "Three 
pounds  a  week,  you  say,  and  the  house,  and  all 
provisions  included?  Well,  I  reckon  I  can 
make  the  niggers  do  as  I  tell  them.  I  can  always 
get  on  well  with  niggers."  Then,  after  a  pause, 
"What  sort  of  a  man  is  the  doctor?" 

"Dr.  Hubbard's  a  very  nice  fellow,  very  popular 
with  every  one.  Of  course  both  islands  are  under 
his  charge,  and  you'll  have  to  take  orders  from 
him.  You'll  find  him  a  very  nice,  easy-going  fel- 
low." Mr.  Stair  looked  hard  at  his  man,  then 
added,  "I  may  tell  you  that,  if  you  take  the  job, 
your  pay  starts  from  the  time  you  sign  on,  and 
you  won't  have  to  cross  for  another  fortnight  or 
so,  when  Mr  Hall,  the  Under-Secretary  of  the 


24      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Aborigines  Department,  is  going  over  with  a  batch 
of  some  forty  niggers." 

Besides  the  good  pay  and  the  comfortable  quar- 
ters, there  was  something  in  the  strangeness  of 
the  job  that  attracted  Sherwin.  The  thought 
pleased  him  that  he  would  be  ruler  on  his  own 
island.  He  would  be  able  to  work  when  he  liked 
and  stop  work  when  he  liked.  He  would  have  his 
own  servant  and  his  own  house,  and  would  be  in 
a  more  independent  position  than  any  he  had 
been  in  since  he  had  entered  New  Ireland.  They 
sat  late  into  the  evening,  Sherwin  asking  excited 
questions  about  the  island  and  receiving  always 
satisfactory  and  promising  answers.  Before  they 
rose  he  had  signed  an  agreement,  stating  that  for 
the  next  six  months  he  would  take  the  position  of 
stockman  and  foreman  on  Kanna  Island. 

By  the  time  the  agreement  was  signed  both  men 
had  drunk  a  good  deal  of  whisky.  They  were  in 
high  spirits  and  very  pleased  with  themselves  and 
the  world  in  general.  Several  other  men  had 
joined  them,  and  the  row  of  the  afternoon  seemed 
to  be  forgotten.  Mr.  Stair — they  always  called 
him  ''Mr.,"  not  out  of  deference  but  because  he 
was  small  and  fat — was  very  well  pleased  to  have 
secured  his  man  and  now  found  occasion  to  be 
facetious  at  Sherwin's  expense. 

'T  hope  you  don't  take  much  interest  in  the 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED      25 

petticoats?  You  won't  find  many  of  the  fair  sex 
on  Kanna  Island." 

Sherwin  answered  with  a  grunt. 

"Ah,  I  see,"  continued  Mr.  Stair,  "he's  one  of 
the  pious  kind;  he  doesn't  take  no  interest  in 
women." 

"You  bet,"  laughed  Sherwin,  his  pride  touched 
in  a  sore  place,  "I  can  walk  down  the  street  with 
my  hat  on  one  side  with  the  best  of  them." 

Mr.  Stair  exploded  in  a  drunken  laugh,  "By 
God,  I  bet  you  can!  Well,  you  had  better  make 
the  best  of  your  time,  for  you  won't  find  even  a 
black  gin  on  Kanna  Island."  Then  as  if  struck 
by  a  happy  idea,  "Will  you  come  and  see  what 
the  town  can  offer?" 

"I  don't  mind  if  I  do,"  said  Sherwin,  and  the 
two  men  went  out. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  Government  cutter,  *'Shark,"  which 
usually  plied  between  the  islands  and  the 
mainland,  was  too  small  to  carry  the  load 
of  natives,  so  a  lugger  of  some  thirty  tons  had 
been  chartered  to  take  them  over  to  Kanna  Island. 
The  ''Sea  Gull"  had  been  used  for  many  years  as 
a  pearling  lugger  on  the  northern  coast,  but  about 
two  years  back  had  run  on  a  mud-flat  with  a  heavy 
cargo,  and  was  thought  to  be  done  for.  She  was 
sold  by  auction  for  a  few  pounds,  and  then  a  gale 
had  come  with  a  strong  spring-tide  and  washed  her 
off.  Her  new  owner  let  her  out  to  carry  cargo 
from  one  coastal  port  to  another.  She  was  now 
anchored  two  miles  out  to  sea  under  shelter  of  the 
outermost  mud-flat.  Her  freight  of  natives  was 
already  on  board,  and  she  was  only  waiting  for 
the  white  men  who,  it  had  been  arranged,  should 
come  on  board  the  first  thing  in  the  morning.  But 
a  strong  easterly  breeze  had  sprung  up,  which 
had  made  embarking  from  the  pier  impossible. 

The  town  of  Kaimera  is  situated  at  the  mouth 
of  a  big  river,  that,  in  the  wet  season,  sweeps  its 

26 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   27 

sediment  far  out  to  sea,  forming  mud-flats  that 
make  it  impossible  for  boats  of  any  size  to  come 
in  to  shore.  A  pier  two  miles  long  has  been 
run  out  across  the  mangrove  swamps,  and  reaches 
to  deep  water.  Against  this  large  ships  can  lie 
up,  but  any  smaller  boat  is  afraid  to  go  near  in 
rough  weather  for  fear  of  being  beaten  against 
the  piles.  For  this  reason  the  "Sea  Gull"  had 
been  compelled  to  seek  shelter  under  the  lee  of  the 
outermost  mud-bank. 

The  only  way  for  Sherwin  and  Mr.  Hall,  the 
Under-Secretary  of  the  Aborigines  Department, 
to  reach  her  was  to  sail  out  in  an  old  ship's  boat 
that  was  generally  used  for  provisioning  the 
"Shark.''  Pomfrey,  the  captain  of  the  "Shark," 
was  to  take  them  out  and  bring  the  boat  back. 

Both  men  were  annoyed  at  this  unexpected  de- 
lay, and  were  anxious  to  make  a  start,  but  Pom- 
frey was  not  to  be  hurried;  he  was  too  old  a 
sailor  to  be  unduly  stirred  by  a  couple  of  lands- 
men, and  he  knew  well  that  the  situation  was  in 
his  hands,  and  that  at  any  rate  it  would  be  a 
longer  job  than  they  supposed,  with  the  breeze 
coming  straight  from  the  sea.  At  last  the  boat 
was  loaded  with  her  cargo  of  packing-cases,  and 
then  Sherwin's  boxes  were  bundled  in,  and  he 
and  Mr.  Hall  had  to  run  through  the  waves  and 
jump  aboard  as  best  they  could. 


28      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

Perched  on  the  boxes,  and  shielding  themselves 
from  the  spray  with  an  old  sail,  they  had  a  long, 
wet  time  of  it,  full  five  hours,  and  were  kept  con- 
stantly on  the  move,  having  to  crawl  under  the 
boom  every  time  the  boat  tacked. 

Pomfrey  seemed  to  enjoy  their  slow  passage, 
though  he  constantly  cursed  at  the  boat  for  making 
so  much  lee-way.  He  looked  a  fine  figure  of  a 
man,  with  his  white  hair  and  whiskers  blown  by 
the  wind,  and  his  watery  blue  eyes  looking  keenly 
out  of  his  red  babyish  face.  All  his  life  he  had 
lived  on  the  sea,  though  some  years  earlier  he  had 
been  disqualified  from  any  responsible  command 
on  account  of  his  habit  of  drunkenness.  His  feet, 
that  were  wedged  against  the  boxes  to  hold  him 
firm  in  his  seat,  looked  hardly  like  the  feet  of  a 
man  for  they  had  become  much  swollen  through 
constant  exposure  to  the  sun  and  the  salt  water, 
and  were  spread  out  sideways  like  the  termina- 
tions of  some  sea-monster.  All  the  latter  part  of 
the  journey  Sherwin  was  nervous  and  ill  at  ease, 
for  capfuls  of  green  water  kept  coming  over  the 
side  of  the  boat,  and  it  seemed  to  him  quite  prob- 
able that,  with  their  heavy  cargo,  the  boat  would 
suddenly  drop  away  from  beneath  their  feet.  In- 
deed, by  the  time  they  reached  the  lugger,  the 
boat  was  half  full  of  water,  and  the  old  man  ad- 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       29 

mitted  that  in  another  ten  minutes  she'd  have 
foundered. 

On  the  lugger  a  strange  sight  awaited  them;  all 
the  hatches  were  open,  and  in  the  shallow  hold 
were  standing  some  forty  natives,  pressed  close 
together,  their  heads  just  coming  above  the  level 
of  the  deck.  They  looked  miserable  and  suffer- 
ing pieces  of  humanity,  and  from  their  close- 
packed  bodies  came  a  pungent  odour  w^hich  per- 
meated the  whole  boat,  and  which  even  the  sea- 
breeze  could  not  dispel. 

*'By  God,  don't  they  stink!"  ejaculated  Sher- 
win,  as  he  viewed  for  the  first  time  the  men  whom 
he  was  to  discipline. 

"It's  not  so  much  the  niggers,  though  I  don't 
say  they  haven't  got  a  smell  of  their  own,  but  it's 
the  Sithi,"  said  Pomfrey.  "This  boat's  been  Sithi 
collecting,  and  when  once  a  boat's  carried  a  cargo 
of  them,  she'll  never  get  rid  of  the  smell.  You'll 
have  a  pleasant  voyage  of  it,"  he  added,  cheer- 
fully. "I  wouldn't  be  surprised  if  it  took  you 
twenty- four  hours  to  get  across  in  this  head- 
wind." 

"And  what  are  Sithis?"  queried  Sherwin. 

"A  sort  of  pearl  shell,  that  they  make  buttons 
of,"  said  the  old  sailor.  "There  used  to  be 
plenty  of  them  on  the  coral  reefs  about  here.     It's 


30      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

a  conical-shaped  shell,  and  fetches  just  now  about 
twenty  pounds  a  ton.  You  can  never  get  the  fish 
out  of  them  altogether.  A  little  bit  breaks  off  at 
the  far  end,  and  that  goes  bad  and  stinks.  When 
once  they've  been  on  board,  it  takes  a  long  time 
to  get  the  stink  out  of  a  boat." 

The  natives  were  indeed  in  miserable  condition. 
They  had  been  on  board  all  night,  and  as  most  of 
them  had  never  seen  the  sea  before,  they  were  very 
much  frightened.  Of  necessity  they  were  chained 
together  by  light  chains  that  went  round  their 
necks.  Sherwin,  who  soon  found  that  one  or  two 
of  them  could  talk  pidgin  English,  spoke  to  them 
in  a  friendly  manner,  trying  to  assure  them 
that  they  would  soon  get  to  a  comfortable  camp 
and  plenty  of  tucker.  They  grinned  miserably, 
but  were  pleased  that  any  one  should  take  no- 
tice. 

When  the  boxes  and  packing-cases  were  ar- 
ranged on  the  deck,  there  was  little  room  left  for 
the  men.  The  skipper,  a  Dutchman,  swore  that 
he  had  never  carried  a  worse  cargo,  and  that  noth- 
ing would  induce  him  to  carry  one  like  it  again. 
Of  the  journey  Sherwin  remembers  very  little,  ex- 
cept that  he  was  very  sick,  and  that  all  the  latter 
part  of  the  time  he  slept  on  the  anchor,  to  which 
he  was  securely  hitched  by  a  friendly  seaman,  who 
saw  that  he  was  in  danger  of  rolling  into  the  sea. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   31 

The  natives  were  also  very  sick  and  frightened, 
and  they  were  all  glad  enough  to  get  into  calm 
water  the  next  morning  and  to  see  the  coast  stretch 
before  them  in  a  long  line  of  broken  cliffs  and 
sandy  beaches. 

Kanna  Island  is  eighteen  miles  long  running 
north  and  south.  It  is  not  more  than  a  mile  wide 
at  its  widest.  Of  the  same  shape  and  direction 
is  Fenton  Island,  which  lies  to  the  southward  of 
Kanna  and  is  separated  from  it  by  a  narrow 
though  deep  channel.  The  east  coast  is  rough 
and  precipitous ;  against  it  break  the  rollers  of  the 
Pacific.  On  the  western  coast  there  are  broken 
cliffs  and  shelving  beaches  that  lead  down  to 
calm  water. 

The  two  islands  together  form  a  barrier  that 
encloses  and  protects  Dolphins  Bay  from  the 
ocean  rollers.  Towards  the  north  point  of 
Kanna,  some  two  miles  from  the  north  cape,  the 
Government  have  made  a  rough  hospital  for  male 
natives.  The  buildings  are  placed  well  and  shel- 
tered by  sand-hills,  and  a  long  narrow  inlet  offers 
a  good  mooring.  On  Fenton  Island  there  is  only 
one  possible  landing  place  and  that  is  far  to  the 
southward.  Here  a  large  hospital  for  women  has 
been  built.  Between  the  two  settlements  there  is 
a  distance  of  some  thirty  miles  or  more. 

The  lugger  now  stood  in  for  the  bay  near  the 


32      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

north  point,  where  two  houses  could  be  seen,  look- 
ing very  large  and  important  from  the  sea. 

Now  that  they  were  in  calm  water,  Sherwin 
began  once  more  to  take  an  interest  in  the  things 
about  him.  The  view  of  the  island  was  by  no 
means  unattractive.  The  houses  looked  comfor- 
table and  well-built,  and  he  anticipated  with 
pleasure  landing  and  making  journeys  of  discov- 
ery. 

In  a  few  minutes  they  had  sailed  in  close  under 
the  cliff,  picked  up  the  moorings  and  dropt  sail; 
then  came  the  work  of  getting  the  natives  ashore. 
These  poor  fellows  were  in  a  miserable  condition, 
though  they  had  remained  silent  and  uncomplain- 
ing. Most  of  them  had  been  very  sick  and  were 
cramped  from  being  so  closely  packed.  One  by 
one  they  were  lifted  out  of  the  hold,  and  then,  in 
sets  of  four,  were  sent  ashore  in  the  dinghy. 
Sherwin  and  Mr.  Hall  were  the  last  to  be  landed, 
and  they  were  met  on  the  beach  by  Dr.  Hubbard, 
a  kindly-looking,  thick-set  Englishman.  Sher- 
win's  first  impression  of  him  was  of  a  country 
squire,  somehow  very  much  out  of  place;  but 
when  the  doctor  squeezed  and  held  his  hand  un- 
necessarily long,  he  was  oddly  reminded  of  the 
village  vicar  of  his  own  school-boy  days.  After 
greetings  and  questions  about  the  natives,  the  doc- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   33 

tor  asked  Mr.  Hall  to  come  up  to  his  house,  and 
told  Sherwin  that  Coffee,  the  Solomon  boy,  would 
prepare  dinner  for  him  at  his  own  quarters. 

The  two  houses  were  separated  by  a  high  sand- 
hill; both  faced  westward  over  the  harbour  and 
could  be  seen  from  the  moorings;  but  it  was  not 
possible,  on  account  of  the  high  sand-hills,  to  see 
the  doctor's  from  Sherwin's  house.  The  first 
taste  of  the  long  solitude  that  was  to  be  his  lot 
came  to  Sherwin  as  he  stood  in  the  doorway  of 
his  house  and  looked  out  across  the  white  expanse 
of  the  dunes;  and  later  he  found  it  curious  to 
remember  how  his  sensation  had  been  one  of  pleas- 
ure at  the  thought  of  being  alone.  For  the  first 
two  days  he  was  left  very  much  to  himself,  for  the 
doctor  and  Mr.  Hall,  who  seemed  to  be  much 
occupied  at  the  hospital,  did  not  trouble  him  with 
a  visit.  He  spent  most  of  his  time  in  exploring 
the  island  and  looking  for  the  twenty-four  head  of 
cattle  and  the  three  hundred  sheep  that  had  been 
landed  some  three  months  earlier.  He  was 
pleased  with  his  first  impressions  of  the  land;  it 
was  much  better  than  he  had  anticipated.  The 
east  coast  was  rocky  and  precipitous  and  of  high 
ground,  which  afforded  shelter  to  the  central  and 
western  portions.  These  latter  were  covered  with 
bushes  of  myrtle,  acacia,  sandal-wood  and  low 


34      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

scrub  of  all  descriptions,  in  and  out  of  which 
hopped  wallabies  and  bandicoots.  On  the  west 
coast  there  were  fine  beaches,  and  it  amused  him 
to  watch  the  armies  of  long-legged  crabs  that  every 
evening  marched  along  the  sands.  Of  the  cattle 
he  found  no  trace,  save  one  bleached  skeleton 
caught  on  a  ledge  of  rock  half-way  down  a  cliff. 
He  concluded  that  all  the  rest  must  have  met  their 
end  by  falling  over  into  the  sea.  The  sheep  and 
goats  were  still  there  in  wild  flocks,  that  never  let 
him  get  within  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  mile. 

Mr.  Hall  stayed  only  two  days,  then,  having 
delivered  his  charge  of  natives  into  the  doctor's 
hands  and  having  inspected  the  temporary  hos- 
pital that  he  had  ordered  to  be  built,  he  sailed 
away  back  to  civilization. 

The  morning  after  his  departure  the  doctor 
called  at  Sherwin's  house  and  they  went  on  to- 
gether to  the  native  camp.  Thirty  of  the  men 
were  well  enough  to  do  work;  these  Sherwin  was 
instructed  to  set  to  the  making  of  roads.  The  hos- 
pital was  a  very  simple  building.  It  consisted  of 
three  walls  made  of  tarred  canvas  and  a  corru- 
gated iron  roof.  In  it  there  were  ten  beds.  In 
the  beds  were  sick  natives,  broken  and  hopeless 
pieces  of  humanity  who  lay  still  all  day  and  looked 
out  across  the  bleak  expanse  of  sand-dunes,  under 
which  they   were   destined   to   be   buried,    and 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   35 

thought  regretfully  of  their  beloved  and  far-away 
bush.  Some  other  fifteen,  who  were  not  consid- 
ered well  enough  for  hard  work,  hung  about  and 
did  odd  jobs  and  waited  on  those  who  lay  in  bed. 
The  doctor  and  Sherwin  got  on  well  together. 
Every  morning  they  went  down  to  the  native  camp. 
Sherwin  would  set  the  natives  to  work  on  road- 
building  and  the  doctor  would  be  busy  at  the  hos- 
pital. At  twelve  o'clock  the  two  men  would  go 
down  to  the  beach  and  bathe  together.  Then 
they  would  go  back  to  their  respective  houses. 
Sherwin  would  have  his  dinner  served  to  him  at 
half-past  twelve,  and  the  doctor  would  have  his 
at  half-past  one.  This  served  to  show  their  dif- 
ference in  status.  The  afternoons  they  spent  at 
their  own  sweet  pleasure,  lounging  in  their  dif- 
ferent ways.  Sherwin  lay  on  his  bed  and  read 
back  numbers  of  magazines  and  newspapers,  or 
else  walked  out  with  a  gun  after  wallabies,  and 
the  doctor  sat  on  the  veranda  of  his  house  smok- 
ing a  pipe  and  writing  in  the  journal  that  he  sent 
to  his  wife  in  Kaimera.  After  the  evening  meal, 
the  doctor  would  sometimes  go  round  to  Sherwin's 
house  and  the  two  would  walk  along  the  beach 
or  sit  talking  on  the  veranda.  The  relation  that 
grew  between  them  it  would  be  difficult  to  define. 
The  doctor,  when  he  remembered  the  conventional 
view  of  their  difference  in  status,  felt  that  it  was  a 


36      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

condescension  to  spend  so  much  time  with  a  rough, 
ill-educated  man,  but  when  he  forgot  the  conven- 
tional view,  as  he  usually  did,  he  was  glad  enough 
of  Sherwin's  company  and  glad  enough  to  take 
his  advice  too.  In  fact,  in  a  short  time,  it  was 
Sherwin  who  decided  what  was  to  be  done  on  the 
island. 

Dr.  Hubbard  had  not  been  a  success  in  his  pro- 
fession. He  had  got  the  reputation  for  careless- 
ness, and  consequently  his  practice  had  suffered. 
This  indeed  had  been  the  cause  of  his  taking  his 
present  job,  which  was  very  little  to  his  taste. 
Sherwin,  on  his  side,  liked,  though  rather  despised, 
the  doctor,  and  was  very  glad  of  his  company. 
He  never  forgot  who  was  nominally  the  chief,  but 
at  the  same  time  managed  to  get  his  way.  The 
natives  at  once  understood  the  situation,  and  one 
and  all  looked  upon  Sherwin  as  their  boss. 

Weeks  and  months  passed,  and  from  time  to 
time  Hubbard  used  to  sail  over  in  the  "Shark"  on 
short  visits  to  Fenton  Island  to  the  women's  hos- 
pital, which  was  looked  after  by  his  assistant,  Mr. 
James,  and  two  nurses.  While  he  was  away,  the 
natives  on  Kanna  Island  looked  after  themselves, 
as  far  as  doctoring  was  concerned.  It  was  in  one 
of  these  intervals  that  Sherwin  decided  to  talk  to 
Coffee  and  find  out  what  sort  of  a  fellow  he  was. 
So  far  he  had  taken  little  notice  of  the  black,  who 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   37 

cooked  well  and  kept  the  houses  clean  for  the 
white  men,  but  beyond  that  showed  no  difference 
from  any  other  black  boy.  One  evening,  when 
Sherwin  was  sitting  at  dusk  on  his  veranda,  he 
shouted  out  to  Coffee  to  come  to  him.  The  black 
came  noiselessly  like  a  shadow.  "Sit  down," 
commanded  Sherwin.     Coffee  sat  down. 

For  a  while  there  was  silence  while  the  white 
man  puffed  at  his  pipe;  then  suddenly  he  asked, 
"What  are  you  eating?" 

"I  not  eat  um  anything."  Coffee  spoke  pidgin 
English,  which  he  had  picked  up  from  the  abo- 
rigines. 

"What  are  you  chewing  then?" 

"I  chew  um  Yangona  root.  Bymeby  spit  um 
out.  Mix  um  with  water.  Make  um  good 
drink."  Coffee  produced  a  little  bowl  into  which 
he  was  spitting  the  chewed  fragments  of  a  white 
root.  "Country  where  I  come  from,"  Coffee  went 
on,  "all  the  young  girl  chew  um  up  and  spit  um 
out;  make  um  plenty  good  drink." 

"What,  you  mean  to  say  the  girls  chew  this 
stuff  up,  and  then  spit  it  out  for  you  fellows  to 
make  a  drink  of?" 

"That's  right,  master." 

"Well,  I'm  blowed! "  said  the  white  man;  then, 
after  a  pause,  "What  does  it  taste  like?" 

"Plenty  good,  master." 


38      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

It  was  in  this  way  that  Sherwin  first  learned 
of  Kava  drinking.  That  evening  he  watched 
Coffee  make  and  drink  a  bowl  full,  and  then 
saw  with  what  happiness  and  contentment  he  sat 
smoking  his  pipe.  Every  evening  after  this,  Cof- 
fee used  to  come  on  to  the  veranda  and  make  his 
drink;  Sherwin  would  talk  to  him  and  question 
him  about  his  own  country.  As  time  passed,  his 
first  somewhat  contemptuous  curiosity  gave  place 
to  genuine  interest  in  what  the  black  fellow  had 
to  say.  Sometimes  they  sat  for  hours  in  silence, 
thinking  their  separate  thoughts  of  the  different 
lands  they  had  come  from.  Above  them  was  the 
cloudless,  star-glittering  sky,  and  beneath  the  sky 
the  white  sand-hills,  and  beyond  the  sand-hills  the 
long  line  of  breakers  upon  the  beach  and  beyond 
them  the  dark,  far-stretching  sea.  Sometimes 
Sherwin  was  moved  to  get  up  and  walk  away  by 
himself.  He  felt  the  beauty  and  the  solitude  of 
the  place;  and  the  pleasure  he  got  from  it  made 
him  long  the  more  passionately  for  his  own  land 
and  his  own  people.  Wfien  he  returned,  the  black 
figure  would  still  be  sitting  silent  and  motionless 
on  the  verandah.  Night  after  night  Coffee's  dark 
figure  came  quietly  up  the  steps.  He  paused  to 
look  at  the  white  man,  who  sat  smoking  in  a  deck 
chair,  and,  if  Sherwin  made  no  remark,  stepped 
noiselessly  into  the  shadow  of  the  door,  sat  him- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   39 

self  upon  the  floor,  his  bowl  between  his  feet,  and 
solemnly  began  to  chew  the  dry  white  lump  of 
Yangona  root.  So  quiet  was  it  that  the  wallabies 
would  come  into  the  house  by  the  back-door,  then 
suddenly,  Coming  upon  Coffee's  squatting  figure, 
would  leap  over  it  in  affright  and  shoot  down  the 
steps  and  away  into  the  scrub. 

One  evening  Sherwin  told  Coffee  to  bring  him 
some  of  the  Yangona.  Instead  of  chewing  the 
roots,  he  rubbed  them  down  to  a  fine  pow^der  on 
a  rough  stone,  then  mixed  the  powder  with  water. 

Coffee  watched  with  keen  interest.  "That 
right,  master.  That  make  up  good  drink,  you 
see!" 

At  first  he  did  not  like  the  new  drink,  but  Coffee 
urged  him  to  persevere,  and  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore he  began  to  appreciate  its  pleasant  after- 
effects. Then  he  also  learned  to  chew  the  root, 
and  the  two  would  sit  together  every  evening  mak- 
ing and  consuming  their  separate  drinks.  With  a 
curious  clearness  and  lightness  in  his  head  and 
a  feeling  of  heavy  numbness  in  his  legs,  he  would 
sit  contentedly  listening  to  the  noise  of  the  dis- 
tant waves  beating  on  the  shore. 

As  time  went  on,  Hubbard's  visits  to  Fenton 
Island  became  more  frequent  and  more  pro- 
longed, so  that  he  was  often  away  for  three 
weeks  or  more.     At  these  times  Sherwin  had  un- 


40      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

disputed  control  of  all  on  the  island.  Every 
morning  he  would  set  the  natives  to  work,  then 
he  would  go  down  to  the  hospital  and  talk  to  the 
sick  blacks,  and  see  that  those  who  were  supposed 
to  look  after  them  did  all  that  they  were  ordered. 
He  treated  them  with  a  friendly  brutality  which 
they  understood  and  rather  liked.  He  never  was 
deliberately  cruel,  but  would  amuse  himself  and 
them  at  the  expense  of  any  one  who  came  par- 
ticularly under  his  notice.  For  example,  there 
was  one  man  with  a  diseased  and  twisted  foot 
who  could  not  walk  straight  but  could  only  shuffle 
sideways.  This  man  Sherwin  would  send  on  er- 
rands and  tell  him  to  look  sharp  or  ''he  would  skin 
him  alive,"  and  then  he  would  laugh  to  see  him 
shuffle  off  sideways  in  his  endeavour  to  make 
haste. 

Coffee  often  came  with  Sherwin  on  his  visits 
to  the  camp,  and  seemed  always  to  know  exactly 
what  was  expected.  Often  he  would  do  what  was 
required  without  having  received  any  orders. 
He  was  like  an  intelligent  dog  who  loves  his  mas- 
ter and  will  do  anything  to  please.  Gradually 
Sherwin  began  to  feel  his  power.  It  was  a  new 
and  exciting  sensation  to  feel  that  he  had  the 
power  of  life  and  death  over  every  man  on  the 
island,  and  that  Coffee  for  some  unexplainable 
reason  was  willing  to  do  anything  he  was  told. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   41 

The  temptation  to  test  his  power  came  upon  him 
one  morning,  and  he  called  out,  "Coffee,  you  not 
to  eat  anything  all  day.  Do  you  hear?"  "Yes, 
master."  "Not  to  eat  anything  till  I  tell  you  you 
may.     Do  you  understand?"     "Yes,  master." 

That  evening  while  he  was  eating  his  supper  he 
asked  Coffee  if  he  was  hungry.  "Little  bit  hun- 
gry, master,"  and  the  black  grinned  shame- 
facedly. Purposefully  he  left  some  meat  on  his 
plate,  and  went  the  last  thing  at  night  to  see  if 
Coffee  had  eaten  it;  but  it  was  still  there.  The 
next  day  he  kept  Coffee  close  to  his  side,  and  in 
the  evening  again  asked  him  if  he  were  hungry. 
"Yes,  master,  little  bit  hungry."  Sherwin  told 
him  to  bring  a  plate.  He  divided  his  dinner  in 
-fialf.  "Now  sit  down  there  on  the  floor  and  eat 
that." 

Coffee's  obedience  was  from  that  moment  con- 
verted into  a  passionate  devotion. 


CHAPTER  III 

ISOLATION  and  loneliness  work  strange 
changes  in  a  man.  At  first  Sherwin  had 
enjoyed  the  sense  of  freedom  that  his  posi- 
tion had  given,  then  as  day  followed  day  with  its 
inevitable  monotony  he  had  longed  with  an  acute 
and  desperate  longing  for  the  comradeship  of 
other  white  men,  and  then  as  the  weeks  and  months 
went  by  he  became  reconciled  to  his  isolation  and 
began  to  perceive  the  many  compensations  that  his 
position  carried.  There  was  little  work  to  do 
and  very  good  pay.  He  tasted  power  and  author- 
ity over  others  for  the  first  time,  and  these  would 
be  difficult  to  give  up.  In  fact,  he  became  very 
soon  accustomed  to  the  new  way  of  life,  and  each 
day  that  he  stayed  on  the  island  he  sank  deeper 
into  the  groove  of  habits  worn  by  the  regular  re- 
currence of  events.  When  at  the  end  of  his  first 
six  months  he  received  a  letter  urgently  pressing 
him  to  stay  on  for  another  twelve  months,  he  did 
not  find  it  difficult  to  consent.  The  one  grievance 
that  he  admitted  to  himself  was  that  he  was  com- 
pelled  to   live   without    the    companionship    of 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   43 

women.  Remembrance  of  past  experience  often 
possessed  him.  Yes,  he  did  want  a  woman,  and 
in  this  respect  he  thought  enviously  of  Dr.  Hub- 
bard, whose  longer  visits  to  Fenton  Island  he  at- 
tributed to  the  presence  of  the  nurses.  He  counted 
up  his  money  and  calculated  what  he  would  have 
in  six  months'  time,  and  wondered  whether  he 
would  take  a  holiday  and  perhaps  get  married,  or 
at  any  rate  persuade  a  woman  to  come  back  and 
live  with  him. 

It  was  about  two  months  after  he  had  decided 
to  stay  on  that  new  difficulties  came  into  his 
life;  some  of  the  most  sick  and  decrepit  of  the 
natives  became  fly-blown.  Dr.  Hubbard  stayed 
away  often  for  weeks  on  end,  and  consequently  the 
natives  were  much  neglected.  Their  wounds  and 
sores  were  left  uncared  for,  and  the  flies  that 
buzzed  ceaselessly  about  were  able  to  settle  on  and 
drop  their  eggs  on  the  weaker  patients,  who  had 
not  the  energy  to  be  always  brushing  them  off. 
Out  of  the  eggs  came  small  maggots,  which  ate 
their  way  into  the  flesh  and  then  grew  into  large 
maggots,  and  the  natives  suffered.  Even  when 
the  doctor  was  on  the  island  things  were  little 
better,  for,  being  a  bom  slacker,  he  was  a  man 
who  hated  his  position  and  took  no  pride  in  his 
work.  He  looked  upon  the  natives  as  a  dying 
race,  and  would  often  say,  the  sooner  they  died 


44     WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

out  the  better.  Besides,  to  have  made  things 
really  hygienic  would  have  needed  hard  and  sus- 
tained effort,  and  this  he  was  incapable  of  mak- 
ing. Every  now  and  then,  to  ease  his  conscience, 
he  would  go  down  and  chat  friendlily  with  them 
and  dab  their  sores  with  some  antiseptic,  and 
when  one  or  other  of  them  died,  he  would  read 
the  burial  service,  while  Sherwin  stood  by  with  his 
hat  off  and  Coffee  filled  in  the  grave  he  had  dug. 
It  was  not  to  the  doctor  that  the  natives  learnt  to 
look  in  times  of  pain  and  distress  but  to  Sherwin, 
whom  they  saw  every  day,  and  whose  natural  feel- 
ing of  kindness  prompted  him  to  ease  their  dis- 
tress. Whether  the  doctor  was  on  the  island  or 
not  he  would  go  down  to  the  hospital  every  morn- 
ing and  pick  the  maggots  out  of  the  sufferers' 
eyelids  and  wash  and  dress  their  wounds. 

One  day  he  happened  to  get  a  scratch  on  his 
finger.  At  the  time  he  thought  little  of  it,  but 
instead  of  the  wound  healing,  little  yellow  marks 
formed  at  its  edges,  and  he  felt  throbbing  pains 
in  the  upper  arm  and  under  the  arm-pit.  Then 
his  arm  swelled  and  became  unnaturally  red,  and 
the  wound  on  his  finger  grew  larger  and  looked 
worse  every  day.  Sherwin  was  frightened,  and, 
since  the  doctor  was  away  at  Fenton  Island,  there 
was  no  one  to  turn  to  in  his  distress.  At  first  he 
tried  the  simple  though  brutal  remedy  of  scrub- 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      45 

bing  the  place  hard  with  soap  and  water  and  a 
nail-brush.  Then  he  went  to  the  doctor's  house 
and  broke  open  the  medicine  chest  and  applied 
some  of  the  antiseptic  that  he  knew  the  doctor 
used  among  the  natives.  Every  day  he  dabbed 
the  place,  and  yet  it  grew  worse  and  worse,  and  all 
the  time  there  was  no  sign  of  a  sail.  Three  weeks 
had  passed  since  the  doctor's  departure,  and  Sher- 
win  told  himself  that  any  time  now  might  see 
him  back.  Every  morning  he  would  rise  early 
and  climb  to  the  top  of  the  high  sand-hill  and  look 
eagerly  southward  in  the  hope  of  seeing  the 
longed-for  triangle  of  white  that  would  mark  the 
approach  of  the  cutter ;  but  always  he  would  walk 
back  to  the  house  disappointed  and  gloomy. 

The  pain  in  his  arm  was  now  so  great  that  at 
night  it  would  keep  him  tossing  upon  his  bed  un- 
able to  sleep,  and  his  anxiety  preying  upon  his 
loneliness  made  him  morose  and  sulky.  He  no 
longer  joked  and  amused  himself  with  the  natives, 
but  after  having  set  them  to  work  he  would  stand 
by  gloom.ily  watching  them  and  would  curse  at 
any  man  who  shirked  or  who  did  not  instantly 
obey.  During  this  time  Coffee  served  him  hand 
and  foot,  bore  with  his  roughest  tempers,  and 
seemed  with  uncouth  grimness  to  sympathize  with 
all  his  complaints.  Twenty  times  a  day  the  white 
man  would  send  him  on  to  the  hill  to  look  out 


46      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

for  the  hoped-for  sail,  and  always  he  would  re- 
port: ^'Nothing,  master.  Not  one  yet.  He 
come  by  and  bye."  Sherwin  would  mutter  to 
himself  cursing  the  doctor  and  the  island  and  the 
ill-luck  that  had  brought  him  there. 

Another  week  passed  and  yet  no  relief  came. 
Something  instinctive  prompted  Sherwin  to  stick 
to  his  work.  Should  he  drop  that,  he  might  go 
mad  with  exasperation  and  fear.  He  even  stuck 
to  his  gratuitous  and  self-imposed  task  of  tend- 
ing the  sick  natives.  He  felt  more  sorry  for 
them  than  ever  before.  They,  like  himself,  were 
injured  by  the  doctor  who  neglected  to  do  his 
duty.  Previously  he  had  felt  a  kindly  sort  of 
compassion  and  had  been  pleased  to  do  anything 
to  lessen  their  sufferings.  Now,  he  was  bitterly 
indignant ;  he  was  a  fellow-sufferer,  and  he  cursed 
from  the  bottom  of  his  heart  the  easy-going  Hub- 
bard. 

Sometimes  when  Sherwin  was  exasperated  by 
the  constant  throbbing  in  his  arm,  and  tired  of  the 
sight  of  his  house  and  its  untidy  rooms,  he  would 
take  long  walks  over  the  island.  With  food  in  a 
knapsack  and  a  bottle  of  water  he  would  often 
walk  twelve  or  thirteen  miles  from  the  settlement 
and  reach  remote  parts  that  probably  had  never 
been  trodden  by  human  foot.  To  the  north  there 
were  stretches  of  high  sand-dunes,  bleak  and 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   47 

white,  with  only  a  few  clumps  of  grass  clinging 
desperately  to  their  edges.  Here  and  there  in  the 
valleys  and  levels  between  the  hills  were  large 
tracts  of  thick  undergrowth,  thorny  and  impene- 
trable, about  which  red  and  white  butterflies  clung 
and  fluttered  in  thousands.  And  always  the  hot 
sunlight  blazed  from  a  cloudless  sky  and  the  hot 
wind  blew  by  him  to  ruffle  the  magnificent  expanse 
of  the  lagoon  which  shimmered  like  a  peacock's 
tail  in  violets,  greens  and  blues,  in  which  porpoise 
played  and  turtle  leisurely  paddled.  He  grew  to 
hate  the  sunlight  and  the  calm  beauty  of  the 
changeful  sea;  there  was  in  them  a  sublime  and 
almost  aggressive  indifference  to  his  own  suffer- 
ings. The  tranquillity  of  the  lagoon  was  an  in- 
sult, and  he  would  turn  away  to  trudge  wearily 
over  the  burning  sand  that  gave  beneath  his  feet. 

Once,  when  far  away  to  the  north  cape,  where 
the  land  rose  in  high,  precipitous  cliffs,  he  came 
upon  a  scene  of  which  at  most  times  he  would 
have  taken  small  notice,  but  which  now  deeply 
touched  his  imagination.  Over  the  plateau  of 
dead  coral  at  the  base  of  the  cliff  the  rollers  of 
the  Pacific  gathered  and  broke  with  tremendous 
force,  sending  their  spray  in  clouds  over  the  island 
to  make  rainbows  with  the  sunshine. 

On  a  ledge  of  rock  about  ten  feet  from  the 
summit  of  the  cliff  stood  a  sheep.     It  stood  mo- 


48     WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

tionless,  its  back  close  against  the  cliff,  its  eyes 
gazing  out  over  the  sea.  Alone  upon  an  upstand- 
ing pinnacle  of  rock  perched  an  eagle,  his  gaze 
fixed  on  the  far  horizon,  his  body  motionless  as 
the  crag  upon  which  he  sat.  Sherwin  knew  that 
they  were  waiting  for  the  end.  The  sheep  had 
easily  jumped  down  to  the  ledge  upon  which  it 
now  stood,  but  found  it  impossible  to  get  back.  It 
was  waiting  silently  for  its  fate.  Sherwin's  in- 
stant desire  was  to  save  the  sheep,  but  in  a  mo- 
ment he  realized  that  even  if  he  were  able  to 
clamber  down  to  the  ledge  of  rock  the  poor  beast 
would  be  more  frightened  of  him  than  of  the  eagle, 
and  would  probably  jump  over  into  the  sea. 
There  was  no  way  in  which  it  could  be  saved. 
And  after  all  why  should  he  wish  to  save  it?  It 
was  only  a  miserable,  half -starved  sheep,  all  skin 
and  wool;  the  eagle  had  as  good  a  right  to  it  as 
any  other;  and  yet  he  was  annoyed  that  the  eagle 
should  sit  there  so  cruelly  waiting.  He  knew  that 
when  the  sheep  became  exhausted  from  lack  of 
food  and  water  the  great  bird  would  drop  silently 
upon  its  body  and  pick  out  its  eyes  and  then 
tear  at  the  bleeding  eye-holes  till  it  reached  the 
brain.  He  waved  his  arm  and  shouted  loud  above 
the  tumult  of  the  waves.  The  eagle  flapped  its 
great  wings  and  rose  in  circles  high  into  the  air, 
then,  seeing  that  there  was  no  real  danger,  re- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   49 

turned  to  its  perch  and  continued  its  long  vigil. 
Sherwin  turned  away  annoyed  at  his  own  emo- 
tions. After  all,  it  was  only  a  common  sheep; 
why  should  he  be  concerned  about  its  fate?  And 
yet  at  that  moment  he  realized  truths  he  had  never 
before  realized. 

After  walking  a  few  yards  he  checked  and 
stood  in  deep  thought,  looking  at  the  waves  as 
they  flung  themselves  impetuously  at  the  cliff.  It 
seemed  to  him  then  that  as  they  rose,  gathered 
volume,  curled  over  and  fell  in  spray,  they  were 
speaking.  It  seemed  as  if  they  said  that  they 
were  indifferent  to  his  existence,  indifferent  to  his 
new  consciousness  of  them,  that  their  motion  was 
powerful  and  everlasting,  while  his  was  weak, 
crippled  and  easily  broken,  and  that  his  emo- 
tions and  thoughts  were  but  spray  flung  off  from 
waves  of  whose  greatness  he  had  never  dreamed. 
He  muttered  to  himself,  cursing  at  the  doctor  and 
at  the  loneliness  of  the  island.  But  it  did  not 
somehow  enter  his  mind  that  he  would  throw  over 
the  whole  of  his  present  manner  of  life  and  re- 
turn to  civilization.  He  no  longer  thought  of 
that  mode  of  escape.  It  would  need  now  some 
large  external  influence  to  disturb  the  even  tenor 
of  his  ways. 


CHAPTER  IV 

OVER  the  calm  expanse  of  a  tropical  sea 
a  light,  warm  breeze  blew,  ruffling  the 
waves  and  dappling  the  reflected  moon- 
light. The  stillness  of  a  tropical  night  hung  over 
the  water  and  the  blaze  of  the  southern  stars  was 
only  slightly  dimmed  by  a  crescent  moon  that  cast 
its  path  of  chequered  reflections  on  a  black  and 
shining  sea.  Here  and  there  in  the  dark  hollows 
of  the  waves  gleamed  for  an  instant  the  phosphor- 
escent form  of  some  bell-shaped  medusa.  With  a 
faint  splash  a  flying  fish  would  occasionally  leap 
above  the  surface  and  flit,  a  thin  and  glimmering 
luminary,  above  the  ripples.  All  was  hushed  in 
the  calm  beauty  of  the  tropical  night.  Even  the 
great  liner  that  drove  its  way  northward  seemed 
to  sit  lightly  on  the  water  and  be  drawn  forward 
by  some  magical  force.  The  yellow  reflections 
from  the  lighted  port-holes  and  saloons  fell 
changeful  and  irregular  on  the  rounded  billows 
that  ran  backward  from  the  bows  and  stretched 
on  either  side  like  the  barbs  of  some  huge  arrow. 
On  the  boat  all  was  quiet,  save  for  the  steady 
so 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED      51 

throb  of  the  engines  and  the  rhythmical  rushing 
of  the  water  along  the  iron  sides  of  the  hull. 
Some  of  the  passengers  sat  in  groups  about  the 
deck,  chatting  and  enjoying  the  stillness  of  the 
night,  others  were  playing  bridge  in  the  smoking- 
room.  The  upper  or  boat-deck  was  empty,  save 
foi*  a  young  man  who  leant  over  the  forward  rail. 
From  where  he  stood  he  looked  down  on  the  dark 
triangle  of  the  fore-castle,  that  seemed  held  mirac- 
ulously above  the  water  that  rushed  by  on  either 
side.  The  wind  blew  easily  through  his  thin  silk 
clothes,  and  it  gave  him  a  keen  pleasure  to  feel 
it  touch  every  part  of  his  body.  For  a  time  it 
amused  him  to  follow  with  his  eyes  the  streaming 
and  incessant  movements  of  the  water,  then  he 
turned  and  watched  the  crew  of  Malays  and 
Chinamen  who  sat  in  little  groups  on  the  for'castle 
deck.  Some  played  cards,  some  talked  in  quick 
emphatic  tones  and  some,  like  himself,  idly 
watched  the  passage  of  the  black  and  glittering 
sea. 

Down  on  the  lower  deck  amongst  all  those  peo- 
ple he  had  felt  cramped  and  stifled.  Life  was 
pushing  too  violently  through  his  veins  to  allow 
him  to  suffer  quietly  the  trite  commonplaces  of 
after-dinner  conversation.  The  solemn  and  ma- 
jestic quiet  of  the  tropical  night  was  too  great  a 
novelty  to  be  let  pass  without  tribute.     Out  there 


52      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

in  the  yielding  darkness  he  could  conjure  with  all 
his  imaginations  and  ambitions.  Here  he  could 
push  out  into  the  spaciousness  of  life  itself.  It 
lay  before  him  wide  and  hopeful.  With  a  burn- 
ing ardour  for  his  work,  a  work  that  he  had 
mastered  and  in  which  he  knew  himself  to  be 
efficient,  he  felt  himself  well  equipped  to  enter 
and  probe  its  mysteries. 

At  Victoria  University  Dr.  Hicksey  had  been  a 
brilliant  student,  had  obtained  scholarships  and 
honours,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty-five  had  taken 
his  doctor's  degree.  Later  he  had  done  research 
in  tropical  diseases  and  now  had  applied  for  per- 
mission to  go  to  Kanna  and  Fenton  Islands  to 
study  the  condition  of  the  sick  natives.  He  looked 
forward  to  the  fine  opportunities  that  he  would 
have;  an  open  field  for  research,  free  from  con- 
trol. He  would  be  able  to  do  all  the  experiments 
he  desired,  he  was  free,  entirely  his  own  master, 
and  thoroughly  equipped  for  the  enterprise.  His 
work  opened  a  vast  unexplored  country.  There 
were  high  mountain  ranges,  with  rough  winds  of 
inspiration  blowing  among  their  crests,  and  from 
the  mountain  tops  there  would  be  horizon  beyond 
horizon  stretching  to  the  limit  of  human  percep- 
tion, and  there  one  day  his  feet  might  be  destined 
to  walk.  He  was  happy  in  the  promising  vision 
of  his  future,  in  the  knowledge  that  he  was  young 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED      53 

and  well  equipped,  and  in  the  flattering  belief  that 
he  was  master  of  his  own  fate. 

Gradually,  as  the  ship  urged  forward  through 
the  dark  water,  there  came  into  sight  the  lights 
of  the  distant  port  of  Kaimera.  At  first  they 
looked  like  a  string  of  yellow  sparks  blown  from 
a  furnace,  and  slowly,  very  slowly,  as  the  boat 
approached,  they  outlined  the  long  length  of  the 
pier  and  showed  in  gleaming  squares  the  windows 
of  houses.  The  news  that  land  was  in  sight 
spread  quickly  through  the  ship,  and  passengers 
and  crew  alike  seemed  to  vibrate  to  a  sudden  stim- 
ulus. 

The  arrival  in  port  after  a  long  journey  will 
touch  the  dullest  traveller  with  a  sense  of  excite- 
ment. The  whole  ship's  company  will  leap  from 
a  kind  of  comatose  doze  into  the  keenest  life  and 
activity.  Besides  the  fact  that  there  are  friends 
to  be  said  good-bye  to,  and  new  friends  to  be  met, 
there  is  always  the  sensation  of  discovery  of  new 
lands.  But,  apart  from  the  feeling  of  the  pas- 
sengers, and  the  fact  that  the  long  monotony  of 
the  sea  has  been  broken,  the  whole  routine  of  the 
ship  alters.  The  crew  seem  miraculously  to  in- 
crease in  numbers,  meals  are  served  at  irregular 
times,  stewards  scurry  about  the  decks,  and  every- 
one is  shaken,  whether  they  will  or  no,  out  of  the 
quiet  and  indolent  mood  of  a  sea-passage.     And 


54      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

then  the  crowd  of  strange  people,  who  jostle  on 
board  as  soon  as  the  first  gangway  is  lowered, 
bring  with  them  a  wave  of  excitement — the  ex- 
citement of  a  crowd  all  touched  by  the  same  emo- 
tion ;  a  sense  of  the  mystery  of  the  sea  that  is  em- 
bodied in  the  ship,  which  comes  with  cargoes  of 
strange  goods,  with  messages  from  far  cities, 
which  is  in  itself  a  complex  and  teeming  centre  of 
human  life. 

The  young  doctor,  who  by  this  time  had  been 
joined  by  several  other  passengers  on  the  upper 
deck,  experienced  that  happy  and  tumultuous  ex- 
citement that  comes  with  the  first  touch  of  a  new 
experience.  This  was  his  first  entry  into  the 
tropics.  He  had  unreasoning  expectations  that 
the  land,  the  plants,  and  the  beasts,  yes,  and  the 
very  dust  of  the  earth,  would  be  endowed  with 
some  indeterminate  quality  of  sweetness  and 
power.  This  was  the  threshold  of  a  new  life.  As 
he  now  waited,  surrounded  by  a  number  of  eager 
faces,  while  the  black  length  of  a  boat  came  slowly 
against  the  pier,  life  throbbed  wonderfully  in 
everything  that  he  touched  and  saw.  Every  epi- 
sode called  to  him  to  live  thoroughly  and  to  take 
what  was  so  bountifully  offered.  The  world  was 
splendidly  his  own,  he  had  only  to  take  the  good 
things  that  it  presented. 

At  the  end  of  the  jetty  there  was  already  a 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED  ^^ 

crowd  assembled.  For  to  the  inhabitants  of  Kai- 
mera  the  arrival  of  a  mail-steamer  was  the  event 
that  broke  the  week's  monotony.  Everyone  who 
could  afford  the  time  would  go  down  by  the  train 
that  ran  out  the  three  miles  of  jetty  to  the  land- 
ing-place, and  there  wait  to  hurry  on  board  the 
ship  as  soon  as  the  gangways  were  down.  Hick- 
sey  was  one  of  the  first  passengers  to  win  his  way 
through  this  upward  pushing  stream  of  humanity. 
He  was  eager  to  be  off  that  limited  space  of  deck 
on  which  he  had  been  confined  for  the  last  ten 
days.  He  walked  along  the  side  of  the  black  hull 
and  looked  up  at  the  white  glare  of  the  electric 
arc  lamps  used  for  unlading.  At  his  back  the 
jetty  was  packed  high  with  iron-gripped  packets  of 
pressed  wool ;  twenty-five  thousand  pounds'  worth 
waiting  for  the  next  cargo  steamer.  He  strolled 
to  mid-ships  and  clambered  into  a  nook  three 
tiers  high,  on  the  wool-packets.  Here,  sheltered 
from  the  wind,  he  lay  full  length  and  watched  the 
intense  and  varied  life  of  the  steamer.  On  the 
lower  deck  Chinese  and  Siamese  sailors  were  hur- 
rying to  and  fro  carrying  the  white  cloth  mail- 
bags.  White  men  in  stiff  india-rubber  collars 
were  standing  here  and  there  gossiping,  and 
through  the  windows  of  the  refreshment  room  he 
saw  the  filling  of  glasses.  He  watched  the  people 
hustling  past  one  another,  and  saw  the  meeting  of 


56      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

a  strong,  fine-looking  Malay  and  a  young  Siamese 
boy,  with  long  hair  and  bare  shoulders.  The 
man  for  a  moment  laid  a  hand  on  the  boy's  throat 
and  passed  the  fingers  of  his  other  hand  through 
his  black  locks.  The  boy  turned  with  a  smile  and 
a  light  musical  laugh.  He  watched  the  man's 
eyes  follow  him  out  of  sight.  At  the  forward 
hatch  the  Chinese  sailors  were  getting  the  donkey- 
engine  started;  above  them  an  electric  arclight 
flashed,  now  off,  now  on,  irregularly  lighting  up 
their  almost  naked  bodies.  The  upper  deck  was 
empty  save  for  a  respectably  dressed  Englishman 
who  was  engaged  in  an  awkward  flirtation  with  a 
young  woman  in  a  red  jersey.  All  these  varied 
manifestations  of  life  delighted  the  young  doctor. 
He  was  glad  to  feel  that  for  the  time  at  any  rate 
he  was  free  from  all  the  worries  and  occupations 
of  the  town,  that  he  was  just  a  loafer  upon  a  wharf, 
glad  to  witness  such  diverse  evidences  of  vivid, 
sensuous  life. 

A  whistle  blew  a  five  minutes'  warning.  The 
visitors  began  to  leave  the  ship.  A  girl,  one  of 
his  fellow-passengers,  who  stood  by  herself  on 
the  upper  deck,  saw  Hicksey  where  he  crouched 
on  the  wool-packets  and  waved  her  handkerchief. 
The  wind  blew  her  light  garment  about  her;  she 
stood  fronting  it  as  if  to  feel  its  close  embrace, 
conscious  of  and  enjoying  every  inch  of  her  body. 


WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED      57 

He  waved  her  an  answering  good-bye  that  had  in 
it  all  the  joy  and  none  of  the  regret  of  departure, 
then  jumped  down  amongst  the  crowd  and  shoul- 
dered his  way  toward  the  train. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  morning  after  his  arrival  in  Kaimera 
Dr.  Hicksey  went  in  search  of  Mr.  Pom- 
frey,  the  captain  of  the  "Shark."  He 
was  told  that  the  old  man  had  his  quarters  at 
Flin's  Hotel,  a  little  drinking  shanty  on  the 
beach.  When  he  asked  the  host  where  Mr.  Pom- 
frey  was  he  was  received  with  a  silent  stare,  and 
then,  after  some  moments  of  critical  inspection, 
was  told  that  Pomfrey  was  not  yet  up,  and  wasn't 
likely  to  be  for  some  time. 

Hicksey  was  all  keenness  to  get  across  to  the 
islands  and  was  not  to  be  put  off.  ''What! 
is  he  still  asleep  at  eleven  o'clock?"  he  asked. 
''Where's  his  room?" 

Again  the  man  considered  before  he  spoke. 
"His  room's  at  the  back,  number  seventeen.  You 
can  go  through  if  you  like.  He's  been  drunk  on 
and  off  for  tke  last  week;  you  won't  get  much 
change  out  of  him." 

Hicksey  walked  down  a  long  passage  and  then 
came  upon  an  open  courtyard,  round  which  were 
a  number  of  jerry-built  shanties,  most  of  which 
had  the  glass  broken  in  the  windows  and  looked  as 

58 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED      59 

if  they  had  not  been  cleaned  since  the  day  they 
were  put  up.  He  rapped  on  the  door  of  number 
seventeen,  but,  getting  no  answer,  pushed  his  way 
in.  On  a  very  dirty  bed  lay  the  old  seaman  in 
shirt  and  trousers.  He  was  fast  asleep,  and  his 
face  was  red  and  puffy.  Hicksey  shouted  his 
name,  but  received  no  response;  then  he  shook 
him,  but  could  get  nothing,  not  even  a  grunt,  out 
of  the  sleeping  man.  After  further  efforts,  all  to 
no  effect,  he  gave  it  up  as  useless.  As  he  passed 
out  through  the  bar  the  man  laughed,  asking  what 
he  had  got  out  of  the  old  chap.  "You  found  him 
a  bit  raddled,  did  you?  There's  not  much  chance 
of  you  getting  him  to  move  for  a  week  or  more." 

Hicksey  walked  back  to  his  hotel  in  a  hot  wind- 
storm of  driving  dust.  He  was  angry  at  this  first 
failure  and  at  the  prospect  of  having  to  waste 
his  time  in  so  squalid  and  uninteresting  a  town. 

Kaimera  is  not  a  very  charming  place.  Like 
many  other  colonial  towns  it  consists  of  rows  of 
iron  houses  painted  red  brown,  with  white-washed 
roofs.  The  only  green  things  that  grow  are  the 
pepper  trees  planted  in  long  lines  in  the  streets, 
and  here  and  there  an  agave.  Behind  the  town 
are  endless  flats  of  desert  scrub,  across  which  the 
camel  teams  come,  drawing  huge  wagons  of  wool 
from  the  interior.  To  the  north  there  is  a  dried- 
up  bed  of  a  river,  with  here  and  there  water-holes, 


6o      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

round  which  cluster  a  few  trees — white  gums  and 
acacias.  The  sun  beats  down  hot  and  straight, 
throwing  a  glare  and  shimmer  of  heat  over  every- 
thing. When  the  west  wind  blows  it  brings  sand 
and  heat  off  the  desert,  and  the  east  wind  comes 
laden  with  clouds  of  mosquitoes  from  the  swamps. 

For  a  man  of  Hicksey's  character  inactivity  in 
such  a  place  was  intolerable;  so  in  the  afternoon 
he  made  another  attempt  on  Flin's  hotel.  This 
time  after  severe  punching  and  shaking  he  got  the 
old  man  to  grunt  and  sit  up  on  his  bed. 

"Well,  and  what  do  you  want,  young  man?" 
Mr.  Pomfrey  demanded,  blinking  at  him  with  his 
bleared  blue  eyes. 

"I  want  you  to  take  me  across  in  the  *  Shark'  to 
Fenton  Island,  as  you  have  orders  to  do.  T  want 
to  get  away  at  once,  and  not  stay  here  wasting 
my  time  while  you  sleep  off  your  drunkenness." 

"Yes,  the  'Shark,'  "  growled  the  old  man,  and 
as  if  he  had  closed  the  discussion  shut  his  eyes. 

Hicksey  shook  him  roughly.  "Look  here,  I'm 
not  going  to  stand  this  nonsense.  You've  got  to 
take  me  across  as  you  are  under  orders  to  do." 

Mr.  Pomfrey  raised  himself  with  a  spark  of 
annoyance.  "Young  man,  who's  in  charge  of  the 
'Shark,'  you  or  I?  I've  got  a  lot  of  cargo  to  take 
aboard.     I'll  have  to  pole  it  out  on  a  punt,  and  I 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      61 

can't  do  it  till  a  mate  of  mine  comes  back  to  help 
me. 

''Is  it  a  job  that  needs  two  men?"  demanded 
Hicksey. 

"Yes,  I  couldn't  do  it  by  myself." 

"Well,  I'll  help  you;  we'll  do  it  together." 

"I  don't  think  you  could  do  that  sort  of  job; 
it's  a  long  wet  job." 

"Whatever  it  is,  I'll  do  it.  I  want  to  get  off 
to-morrow.  I  shall  be  round  here  at  eight  o'clock 
and  shall  expect  to  find  you  up.  We'll  tackle 
the  work  together.  Where  are  these  things  you 
have  to  put  aboard?"' 

"They're  in  a  store-house  at  the  back."  Then 
the  old  sailor  added  with  a  chuckle:  "Aren't  you 
afraid  of  the  water  snakes?" 

"I'm  not  afraid  of  anything  except  wasting  my 
time.  How  many  cases  are  there?  I'll  have  a 
look  at  them,  and,  if  necessary,  get  a  man  to  help 
us  load  them." 

"About  a  dozen  or  so." 

"Very  well,  I'll  see  you  in  the  morning,"  said 
Hicksey,  and  went  out,  leaving  the  old  man  to 
finish  his  sleep.  He  stopped  in  the  bar  for  some 
minutes  and  reported  his  interview  to  the  host, 
who  was  now  less  taciturn  and  seemed  to  take  in- 
terest in  the  young  man's  direct  manner  of  attack, 


62      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Then,  to  establish  good  feeling,  Hicksey  stood 
drinks  all  round,  and  ordered  three  bottles  of  the 
best  brandy,  saying  that  he  expected  to  find  Pom- 
frey  sober  the  next  morning. 

The  following .  day  they  had  not  very  much 
difficulty  in  getting  started.  The  punt,  an  enor- 
mously heavy  vessel  of  wood,  was  dragged  in 
close  to  the  shore  and  provisions  were  piled  on 
board.  When  she  was  fully  loaded  the  two  men 
began  poling  her  out  towards  the  "Shark,"  that 
lay  anchored  three-quarters  of  a  mile  from  the 
shore.  It  was  harder  work  than  the  doctor  had 
anticipated,  for  the  current  kept  turning  the  boat 
round,  and  she  was  a  most  unwieldy  craft  to  man- 
age. For  an  hour  they  worked  hard,  the  work 
becoming  more  difficult  as  they  got  into  deeper 
water.  ''We'd  better  get  in  and  swim,"  sug- 
gested Pomfrey;  "that  is,  if  you  aren't  afraid  of 
the  water  snakes,  and  I  never  yet  knew  them  to 
bite  anybody,  though  some  do  say  they  are  very 
poisonous." 

The  water  snakes  were  indeed  very  real  crea- 
tures, and  not,  as  the  doctor  had  imagined,  legend- 
ary animals.  He  had  already  seen  two  or  three  of 
them  in  the  muddy  water.  They  were  bright  yel- 
low and  black  in  colour  and  from  four  to  eight 
feet  long.  There  was,  however,  nothing  for  it  but 
to  follow  Pgmfrey's  example  and  climb  over  the 


WHEKE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   63 

edge.  He  kept  on  his  silk  trousers  in  a  sort  of  un- 
reasoning hope  that  they  would  prevent  the  snakes 
from  biting,  but  the  rest  of  his  clothes  he  left  in  the 
punt.  They  swam  one  on  each  side,  pushing  the 
old  boat  in  front.  From  that  moment  they  began 
rather  to  like  one  another,  and  when  on  the  way 
over  the  doctor  showed  no  signs  of  sea-sickness, 
but  took  his  turn  at  sailing,  the  old  sailor  forgave 
him  his  domineering  manners  of  the  previous  day. 
After  a  fair  passage  the  ''Shark"  stood  in  to- 
wards the  coast  of  Fenton  Island  as  the  sun  sank 
behind  her  into  the  sea.  The  shadow  of  her  sail, 
a  blue  patch  upon  the  water,  stretched  far  ahead 
of  the  little  craft,  and  the  line  of  the  ragged  cliffs 
reflected  the  sunlight  and  shone  like  red  copper. 
The  sand  beaches  blazed,  a  fringe  of  gold,  and  the 
waves,  limpid  and  clear,  enclosed  within  their 
hollows  flitting  lights  of  green  and  yellow  ame- 
thyst. The  men  on  the  cutter  had  been  silent  for 
the  last  hour.  They  experienced  in  the  blazing 
beauty  of  the  tropical  evening  that  delicate  and 
rare  poise  between  physical  well-being  and  spirit- 
ual contentment.  For  the  time  they  were  content 
to  live  wholly  in  themselves,  happy  to  feel  the  free- 
dom of  the  sea,  the  sunshine,  and  the  wind,  and  to 
know  themselves  more  personally  in  touch  with  the 
primitive  forces  of  life  than  when  in  the  bustle 
and  tumult  of  the  town. 


64      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

Hicksey  was  at  the  tiller  steering  for  the  mouth 
of  the  harbour.  Now  and  then  the  boat  bent  her- 
self to  the  wind  and  the  water  rippled  more  noisily 
under  her  keel.  As  they  neared  the  moorings 
Pomf rey  broke  the  silence : 

"Do  you  think  you  can  bring  her  up  close  to  the 
buoy  while  I  grab  it  with  the  hook?'' 

"Yes,  I  think  I  can  manage,"  said  Hicksey,  as 
he  looked  keenly  ahead. 

"Stand  ready  to  let  go  the  jib  when  I  tell  you," 
shouted  Pomfrey  to  the  man  Tony,  who  was  his 
second  in  command  and  constituted  the  whole  crew 
of  the  "Shark,"  being  cook  and  man  of  odd  jobs 
combined;  a  strange,  silent  being  who  never 
washed  and  who  hardly  ever  went  ashore.  When 
unoccupied  Tony  would  sit  and  w^atch  the  con- 
stant moving  of  the  waves,  and  seemed  to  have 
outlived  all  ambition  or  desire. 

"Let  her  go ! "  The  jib  fell  and  the  boat  swung 
close  to  the  bobbing  buoy. 

"I  see  you  know  how  to  sail,  sir,"  said  the  old 
man  with  enthusiasm.  "Now  pull  in  the  main- 
sail." 

In  less  than  thirty  seconds  the  boat  was  changed 
from  a  free  live  flying  creature  to  a  hull  stripped 
bare  and  chained.  The  men  had  as  suddenly 
sprung  from  their  dreams  back  into  active  life,  and 
now  busied  themselves  in  making  things  ship- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   65 

shape.  When  all  was  in  order  and  the  sails 
corded  they  sat  down  to  wait  the  coming  of  the 
dinghy. 

"Beautiful  water  here,"  said  Pomfrey,  looking 
into  its  clear  depths.  The  boat  was  moored  in 
about  three  fathoms,  and  the  water  was  so  clear 
that  in  the  evening  light  the  white  sandy  bottom, 
with  here  and  there  black  patches  of  seaweed  float- 
ing on  it,  was  clearly  visible. 

"I  think  I  shall  have  a  bathe,"  said  Hicksey. 
"I  feel  dirty  from  the  water  in  the  river." 

*'Are  you  not  afraid  of  the  sharks?" 

"Ah,  I  wouldn't  dive  in  here  for  anything,"  said 
Tony,  full  of  apprehension.  "I've  seen  as  many 
as  ten  of  them  all  swimming  about  this  very 
place." 

"If  I  don't  think  of  the  sharks,  they  won't  think 
of  me,"  said  the  doctor,  as  he  stripped  off  his  shirt. 

Pomfrey  chuckled  at  the  young  man.  "Can 
you  dive  well?"  he  asked. 

"Fairly  well." 

"Then  come  here,  will  you,  for  a  minute.  Do 
you  see  that  round  thing?  That's  an  anchor  I  lost 
here  about  six  weeks  ago.  Do  you  think  you 
could  bring  it  up?" 

"Yes,  I  think  I  can.     I'll  try." 

"Take  a  rope  down  and  make  it  fast.  You  will 
find  it  too  heavy  to  lift." 


66  WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

"All  right.  I'll  just  have  a  swim  round  first." 
The  freshness  of  the  water  made  him  feel  ready 
for  any  adventure.  He  shouted  with  delight  as 
the  cool,  delicious  stuff  swirled  about  his  limbs. 
Then,  driving  the  breath  out  of  his  body,  he  struck 
down  to  the  sea  floor,  found  the  anchor,  and  made 
fast  the  rope. 

When  once  more  he  clambered  over  the  edge 
of  the  cutter  Tony  regarded  him  as  some  one  back 
from  the  dead,  as  a  being  hardly  human.  "I  tell 
you  I  wouldn't  have  dived  in  there  for  ten 
pounds,"  he  repeated. 

This  was  the  first  of  the  reckless  deeds  that  gave 
Hicksey  the  reputation  of  utter  fearlessness.  As 
Pomfrey  often  repeated:  "He's  afraid  of  noth- 
ing, that  young  man,  except  wasting  his  time. 
That's  what  he  told  me  when  I  first  met  him,  and 
that's  truth." 

In  a  few  minutes  the  dinghy  arrived,  and  Hick- 
sey went  on  shore  with  Mr.  James,  a  neat  and 
rather  smug-looking  young  man  of  twenty-one, 
who  was  medical  assistant  at  the  hospital.  Mr. 
James  had  been  a  grammar  school  boy,  who  from 
his  earliest  youth  had  cherished  the  ambition  of 
becoming  a  doctor.  Unfortunately  he  was  unable 
to  pass  any  of  his  exams,  and  so  was  glad  enough 
to  accept  a  position  of  assistant  and  bottle-washer 
at  the  island  hospital. 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      67 

By  the  time  they  reached  the  beach  the  light  had 
almost  gone  out  of  the  sky.  Just  a  few  lines  of 
red  showed  above  the  horizon.  These  were  re- 
flected in  the  shining  wet  sand  and  were  caught  on 
the  crests  of  the  mauve  and  deep  blue  ripples.  Up 
the  beach  armies  of  yellow  crabs,  poised  high  on 
long  legs,  scuttled  about,  popping  in  and  out  of 
their  holes.  Dr.  Hubbard  had  come  down  to  the 
beach  together  with  the  two  nurses.  Hicksey  in- 
troduced himself,  and  briefly  explained  the  object 
of  his  visit,  and  presented  his  letters  of  introduc- 
tion from  the  head  of  the  aborigines  department. 


CHAPTER  VI 

FROM  the  very  first  there  was  a  natural  an- 
tipathy between  the  two  doctors.  Hub- 
bard felt  instinctively  that  the  keen,  ener- 
getic-looking young  man  would  disturb  his  quiet, 
the  quiet  of  the  island  life  that  he  was  beginning  to 
enjoy;  for  though  he  was  constantly  grumbling  at 
his  exile  from  civilization  he  had  grown  to  love 
the  slow  and  easy  life.  He  loved  the  little  house 
sheltered  by  the  sand-hills,  and  the  little  room  in 
which  he  and  the  two  nurses  and  Mr.  James  took 
their  meals.  Often  he  would  stand  by  the  window 
and  enjoy  the  view  of  the  expanse  of  blue  sea 
arched  over  by  a  brilliant  sapphire  sky.  He  loved 
his  evening  walks  on  the  sands  when  the  sea  came, 
lapping  to  his  feet,  while  the  dry  scrub  on  the  hill- 
tops turned  from  yellow  to  green  and  from  green 
to  mauve  in  the  fading  light.  He  loved  his  posi- 
tion of  unquestioned  and  uncriticized  authority, 
the  weight  that  he  felt  his  own  words  carried  and 
the  pleasant  feeling  that  he  could  always  hold 
forth  without  any  fear  of  being  contradicted. 
And  now,  suddenly  and  unexpectedly,  was  landed 

upon  him  this  young  man,  who  came  straight  from 

68 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      69 

a  city  hospital,  and  would  probably  hold  modern 
ideas  as  regards  cleanliness  and  new  up-to-date 
theories. 

The  two  men  were  physically  and  mentally  of 
very  different  types.  Hicksey,  a  wiry,  nervous 
man,  with  a  keen  sensitiveness  to  life  and  a  burn- 
ing enthusiasm  for  his  work,  could  never  bring 
himself  to  respect  the  lazy,  somewhat  stout  and 
easy-going,  Hubbard. 

As  they  walked  up  the  beach  together  Hubbard 
was  wondering  how  he  could  best  manage  to  slip 
away  and  tidy  up  some  of  the  grosser  negligences 
before  Hicksey  saw  over  the  wards. 

At  the  evening  meal  there  was  a  feeling  of  con- 
straint over  the  whole  party.  The  women  were 
shy  of  the  emphatic  young  man,  who  began  the 
conversation  on  an  altogether  wrong  note  by  ask- 
ing questions  of  a  medical  character.  Hubbard 
turned  red  and  answered  ponderously,  trying  to 
lead  the  conversation  back  to  lines  of  conventional 
commonplace,  and  finally  reminded  him  that  the 
evening  meal  was  a  social  gathering  and  not  a 
time  to  discuss  professional  subjects.  Hicksey's 
cheeks  flushed  with  annoyance,  and  he  did  not 
speak  for  the  remainder  of  the  meal.  He  was  full 
of  a  fresh,  untried  ardour  for  his  profession  and 
impetuous  to  get  to  work.  Most  of  the  night  he 
spent  in  unpacking  his  microscope  and  instru- 


70      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

ments,  and  in  fitting  up  a  room  in  which  to  work. 

The  hospital  on  Fenton  Island  was  kept  in  bet- 
ter order  than  the  rough  ward  on  Kanna  Island. 
There  were  two  nurses  always  in  attendance. 
These,  though  not  properly  trained  in  the  strict 
sense  of  the  word,  had  had  a  fair  amount  of  expe- 
rience and  kept  things  moderately  clean;  and 
James,  in  his  inexperienced  and  untaught  way, 
was  an  enthusiast,  and  did  his  best  to  do  what  he 
considered  the  right  thing.  In  spite  of  these  ef- 
forts Hicksey  found  the  place  far  below  his  stan- 
dard of  what  a  hospital  should  be,  and  in  a  very 
short  time  he  had  summed  Hubbard  up  as  an  in- 
competent sluggard.  He  felt  it  almost  as  a  per- 
sonal affront  that  a  man  should  make  so  little  of 
a  good  position  and  fine  opportunities.  He  kept 
his  opinion,  however,  to  himself,  and  was  occupied 
most  of  the  time  with  his  own  work.  But  in  spite 
of  his  close  application  to  his  own  interests  it  was 
not  long  before  he  found  that  he  was  an  intruder 
in  more  ways  than  one. 

The  situation  between  the  nurses  and  the  two 
men  was  already  delicate  and  strained,  and  he  did 
not  make  things  any  easier  by  his  presence.  The 
two  women,  both  a  little  passe,  showed  more  than 
a  motherly  interest  in  James,  who  was  flattered 
though  a  little  embarrassed  by  their  regard. 
They  both  also  liked  Hubbard  for  his  easy-going 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      71 

and  pleasant  geniality.  But  then  they  remem- 
bered that  he  was  a  married  man,  and,  although  at 
the  back  of  their  minds  all  manner  of  possible 
eventualities  may  have  lurked,  they  had  learnt 
from  experience  that  it  was  not  wise  to  disclose 
certain  half-admitted  thoughts.  Hubbard,  on  his 
part,  was  fond  of  feminine  adulation,  and  bid  for 
his  share.  Each  of  the  four  watched  the  others 
narrowly,  and  all  were  careful  not  to  commit 
themselves.  Into  this  nicely  balanced  situation 
Hicksey  came  as  an  alien  and  disturbing  force. 
What  most  annoyed  the  women  was  that  he  took 
no  place  in  the  figure,  but  remained  a  silent  and, 
they  guessed,  a  critical  spectator.  It  was  humil- 
iating too  that  they  had  to  admit  that  he  was 
better-looking  than  Hubbard  and  more  of  a  man 
than  James;  in  fact,  obviously  a  better  catch,  and 
yet  he  showed  in  neither  of  them  the  least  interest. 
They  found  that  his  presence  soon  became  irk- 
some, and  they  combined  in  a  tacit  dislike  and 
armed  neutrality  This  soon  developed  into  a 
warfare  of  hostile  looks.  Hicksey  tried  not  to 
notice  these,  and  believed  that  so  long  as  he  in- 
terested himself  entirely  in  his  work  he  could  steer 
clear  of  any  friction;  but  it  was  not  long  before 
there  happened  one  of  those  small  incidents  that 
are  the  forerunners  of  a  quarrel,  and  show  dis- 
cordant feelings  beneath  a  calm  exterior. 


72      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

On  a  sultry  hot  day,  when  the  sun  blazed  upon 
the  iron  roof  of  the  hospital  and  the  steamy  at- 
mosphere of  the  place  was  heavy  with  the  smell 
of  natives  and  iodoform,  on  such  a  day,  when 
nerves  are  on  the  stretch  and  tempers  are  easily 
lost,  Hicksey,  in  walking  through  one  of  the 
wards,  happened  to  notice  that  Nurse  Hilton  did 
not  take  the  trouble  to  dip  the  instruments  used 
in  the  dressing  of  wounds  into  antiseptic  before 
using  them  on  the  next  patient  He  walked  up 
close  to  her  before  she  noticed  that  he  was  watch- 
ing. 

"Let  me  look  at  those  instruments,  nurse.  You 
haven't  sterilized  them.  Don't  you  know  your 
business  better  than  to  do  that  sort  of  thing?" 

''I  beg  your  pardon.  Dr.  Hicksey,  but  I  don't 
know  whether  that's  any  of  your  business.  I'm 
working  under  Dr.  Hubbard,  and  he  doesn't  wash 
his  instruments  every  time,  and  I  don't  know  why 
I  should." 

"Don't  answer  me  in  that  tone;  you  know  per- 
fectly well  that  absolute  cleanliness  is  essential. 
Dr.  Hubbard,  I  am  sure,  would  want  you  to  be 
particular  in  that  respect,  and  I  shall  certainly 
report  you.  Let  me  see  you  sterilize  the  things  at 
once." 

"You  had  much  better  mind  your  own  business, 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   73 

Dr.  Hicksey,"  snapped  the  nurse,  reddening  with 
annoyance. 

The  young  man  made  no  reply  but  stood  in  si- 
lence and  saw  that  she  did  what  he  had  instructed. 
When  he  reported  the  case  Hubbard  hummed  and 
ha'ed  and  said  that  little  negligences  of  that  sort 
would  occur  sometimes  in  the  best  hospitals,  and 
that  they  all  had  a  great  deal  of  work  to  perform 
under  very  trying  circumstances,  and  that  it  would 
be  better  if  Dr  Hicksey  left  it  to  him  to  find  fault, 
as  he  was  anxious  not  to  upset  the  nurses  in  any 
way.  He  added  that  it  would  be  better  if  Dr. 
Hicksey  occupied  himself  exclusively  with  his  own 
work.  Hicksey  took  the  rebuke  in  silence,  but  felt 
now  all  the  more  critical  towards  the  management 
of  the  hospital. 

After  this  little  incident  the  relations  between 
Hicksey  and  the  other  members  of  the  staff  be- 
came strained.  The  two  women,  who  from  the 
first  had  never  liked  him,  were  pointedly  polite 
and  kept  up  an  attitude  of  armed  neutrality, 
broken  occasionally  by  a  hostile  look.  Nurse 
Hilton  had  told  Nurse  Toms  of  the  episode  in 
the  ward,  and  they  had  agreed  that  Dr.  Hicksey 
was  an  unpleasant,  meddling  young  man,  and 
that  it  would  have  been  far  better  if  he  had  never 
come  to  the  island.     She  also  told  James;  and  in 


74      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

a  very  few  days  Hicksey  found  himself  left  much 
to  his  own  resources.  He  despised  and  disliked 
Hubbard,  and  the  two  women  waged  against  him 
a  petty  feminine  warfare.  James  was  the  only 
person  with  whom  he  had  much  intercourse. 
This  young  man,  in  spite  of  Nurse  Hilton,  could 
not  altogether  dislike  Hicksey.  He  recognized  in 
him  a  fellow-enthusiast,  and  respected  him  for 
his  obvious  ability,  realizing  that  here  was  a 
man  willing  and  able  to  teach  what  he  most  wanted 
to  know.  Hicksey  on  his  side  was  not  much  con- 
cerned about  what  the  other  thought.  He  was 
pleased  by  the  novelty  of  the  life  on  the  island  and 
was  immensely  interested  in  his  work,  and  when 
not  occupied  with  that  would  set  off  for  solitary 
tramps.  He  was  in  perfect  health  and  fitness, 
delighting  in  all  physical  exercise.  He  bathed 
twice  every  day,  and  while  the  others  kept  close 
to  the  shore,  rarely  going  deeper  than  their  waists, 
he  would  swim  far  out,  quite  indifferent  to  the 
sharks'  fins  that  now  and  then  jutted,  black,  evil- 
looking  triangles,  above  the  surface. 

When  one  morning  Dr.  Hubbard  announced 
that  he  was  going  to  leave  for  a  short  visit  to 
Kanna  Island,  Hicksey  said  that  he  wished  to 
come  too.  The  doctor  was  not  pleased  and  would 
rather  have  left  him  at  the  hospital.  He  had  not 
visited  Kanna  for  six  weeks,  and  he  did  not  like 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      75 

to  think  what  state  he  would  find  the  natives  in 
or  of  Hicksey's  white  face  of  contempt  and  silent 
criticism,  for  though  the  young  man  now  never 
made  any  remark  about  the  management  of  the 
hospital,  his  silence  was  often  more  pointed  and 
cutting  than  the  most  bitter  speech.  Hubbard  had 
a  vision  of  neglected  and  dirty  natives,  and  al- 
ready he  felt  the  sharpness  of  Hicksey's  silent  con- 
tempt. He  tried  even  to  persuade  him  to  stay  and 
continue  the  work  he  had  started,  but  Hicksey  was 
not  to  be  shaken  off,  saying  that  he  wished  par- 
ticularly to  come  and  see  some  of  the  men,  and 
that  he  wished  to  have  a  work-room  on  both  of 
the  islands.  Hubbard  could  raise  no  further  ob- 
jection. The  young  man  had  a  perfect  right  to 
go.  Then  an  idea  struck  him,  that  he  might  get 
Hicksey  to  stay  on  Kanna  and  tidy  up  the  work 
that  he  had  left  undone,  and  in  this  way  he  would 
get  rid  of  the  fellow  and  establish  once  more  the 
comfortable  and  friendly  atmosphere  that  had 
existed  at  the  hospital  before  the  young  doctor's 
arrival. 

On  the  way  over  Hubbard  talked  considerably 
about  the  difficulties  of  running  two  places  so  far 
removed  from  one  another,  and  hinted  that  he  was 
overworked  and  consequently  unable  to  keep  both 
hospitals  up  to  the  standard  that  he  desired. 
Hicksey  was  polite  but  taciturn;  he  had  no  wish 


76   WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

to  make  excuses  easy  for  a  lazy  fellow.  After 
a  while  they  relapsed  into  silence,  and  the  elder 
man  began  to  hate  him  in  his  heart. 

When  they  landed  on  the  beach  of  Kanna 
Island  they  were  met  by  an  alarming  figure;  Sher- 
win,  his  red  beard  grown  long  and  unkempt,  his 
shirt  open  over  his  tanned  and  hairy  chest,  looked 
as  wild  as  any  native.  Close  behind  him,  mov- 
ing as  his  shadow,  was  the  faithful  Coffee,  his 
black  limbs  shining  in  the  sunshine,  naked  save 
for  a  small  twisted  waist-cloth  and  a  string  of  yel- 
low shells  round  his  neck.  Sherwin's  right  hand 
was  tied  up  in  a  thick  clout  of  lint.  He  did  not 
answer  the  doctor's  hail,  but  stood  at  some  little 
distance,  till  the  two  men  had  pulled  up  the  dinghy 
on  to  the  dry  sand.  Then,  as  fierce-looking  as 
some  monstrous  and  hairy  animal,  he  strode  to- 
wards Hubbard.  All  the  exasperation  and  pain 
of  the  last  weeks  found  outlet  in  a  stream  of  oaths 
and  invective. 

When  he  paused  for  breath  Hubbard  fell  back 
a  pace  and  tried  to  recover  himself  and  his  dignity. 
"Come,  come,  my  man,  you  mustn't  speak  to  me 
like  that.  Remember,  I'm  dependent  on  this  cut* 
ter.  It  isn't  as  if  there  were  a  steamship  running 
between  the  islands." 

Sherwin  went  off  in  a  long  angry  laugh.  "By 
God,  Doctor,  do  you  know  you've  left  me  alone 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED      77 

on  this  island  for  six  infernal  weeks,  and  now  you 
talk  of  the  cutter !  It's  the  women,  God  damn  you. 
When  you're  in  hell  you  can  think  of  what  I've 
tasted ;  and  the  niggers  go  through  hell  too.  Poor 
devils,  they  lie  there  with  their  eye-holes  crawling 
all  with  maggots  and  no  one  to  help  them.'-  As 
he  continued  he  worked  himself  up  and  became 
even  more  angry.  *'It's  not  my  job  to  do  that  sort 
of  thing,  and  see  what  comes  of  it.  In  doing  your 
work,  just  because  I  couldn't  bear  to  see  them 
suffering,  I  got  some  sort  of  poison  into  my  hand. 
For  three  weeks  it's  been  getting  worse  and  worse. 
I  couldn't  sleep  for  the  pain,  couldn't  sit  down  for 
it  hardly.  I  had  to  keep  walking  up  and  down, 
walking  up  and  down  all  the  time.  I  tell  you  it's 
enough  to  send  a  man  mad  to  be  stranded  alone  on 
a  place  like  this  with  nothing  but  black  men  and 
flies." 

At  the  allusion  to  the  fly-blown  natives  Hub- 
bard had  gone  white  to  the  lips.     What  on  earth 
would  Hicksey  think !     His  mind  was  in  a  whirl 
of  confusion,  anger,  and  fear.     Being  a  coward, 
fl^k  was  more  afraid  than  angry,  mortally  afraid 
^^Hwhat  he  might  find  when  he  next  went  to  the 
PPKugh,   inadequate  hospital  on  the  sand-dunes. 
He  was  angry  too  at  being  shown  up  so  mercilessly 
before  a  colleague  whose  attitude  towards  him  he 
knew  to  be  critical  and  disparaging,  and  who  now 


78      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

stood  by,  silent  and  embarrassed,  looking  at  the 
sand  at  his  feet,  and  making  in  it  fan-shaped  pat- 
terns with  the  toe  of  his  shoe,  but  all  the  while 
keenly  taking  in  what  was  said. 

For  a  moment  the  two  men  stood  in  silence 
facing  one  another.  Hubbard  felt  he  must  speak 
or  else  that  wild  savage  of  a  man  might  be  pro- 
voked to  strike  him.  "What's  that  you  say  about 
the  natives  getting  fly-blown?  It's  impossible," 
he  tried  to  bluster. 

''If  it  wasn't  for  me  they'd  be  a  lot  worse  than 
they  are.  When  there's  no  one  here  to  look  after 
them  they  are  not  likely  to  be  able  to  look  after 
themselves.  But  I'll  thank  you  before  you  look 
at  them  to  look  at  my  arm  first;  it's  in  a  pretty  bad 
way  I  can  tell  you." 

Hubbard  was  so  scared  that  he  was  glad  of  any 
way  of  escape.  "Very  well,  come  up  to  my  house 
and  I'll  look  at  it  at  once." 

Sherwin  was  a  little  mollified.  "It  aches  right 
up  to  my  shoulder  and  down  my  side,  and  there's 
a  swelling  here."  He  indicated  his  arm-pit. 
"At  times  I  haven't  know  how  to  bear  myself."    .j^ 

When  they  got  into  the  house  and  the  bandagiag 
were  removed,  Hubbard,  although  he  was  shockec 
at  the  sight  of  the  man's  hand,  tried  to  make  light 
of  the  wound.  "Ah,  yes,  I  see  you  must  have  got 
a  little  blood-poisoning.     It  must  be  very  painful. 


k 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      79 

But  I'll  soon  get  that  right.  I  shall  have  to  lance 
it,  and  then  we  must  bathe  it  every  day  with  some 
lotion  I  shall  give  you,  and  before  long  we'll  have 
it  much  better."  He  chose  to  ignore  and  pretend 
that  he  had  not  noticed  Sherwin's  rudeness,  and 
now  talked  in  his  most  friendly  manner.  He 
joked  and  chatted  and  assured  Sherwin  that  there 
was  no  need  for  anxiety.  Sherwin  was  naturally 
cheered  at  having  white  men  to  talk  to  once  again, 
and  was  heartened  by  the  doctor's  assurances  and 
gradually  became  less  surly,  though  he  let  it  be 
seen  that  he  still  bore  a  grievance  against  Hub- 
bard. 

For  the  next  few  days  the  two  doctors  were  kept 
busy.  There  was  much  work  to  be  done,  Hicksey 
found  the  men's  ward  in  an  incredibly  filthy  and 
neglected  condition.  He  gave  up  his  own  work 
and  set  himself  to  help  establish  some  sort  of  order 
and  cleanliness.  He  made  few  comments,  uttered 
no  criticism,  but  his  silence  had  an  angular  and 
uncomfortable  significance  that  Hubbard  found 
more  intolerable  than  open  censure.  Every  morn- 
ing Sherwin  came  to  the  ward  to  watch  the  two 
men  at  work.  He  liked  the  look  of  Hicksey,  but 
could  not  understand  his  reserve.  Several  times 
he  tried  to  get  into  conversation,  but  was  answered 
by  monosyllables.  This  annoyed  him,  and  he  fell 
back  on  Hubbard  for  company,  who  was  as  genial 


8o      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

as  ever  and  seemed  very  proud  of  himself  on  ac- 
count of  the  efforts  he  was  making.  But  it  was 
impossible  for  Hubbard  to  keep  for  any  length  of 
time  at  regular  work,  and  in  a  few  days  he  had 
relapsed  into  his  habits  of  indolence. 

The  three  men  were  singularly  ill-adapted  to 
live  together,  cut  off  as  they  were  from  all  civil- 
ization, from  the  social  conscience  of  the  race. 
That  force  holds  men  together,  gives  them  their 
moral  values,  and  sets  them  each  working,  whether 
they  will  or  no,  in  the  complex  and  intricate 
machine  which,  irrespective  of  their  own  desires, 
uses  them  for  its  peculiar  ends,  letting  the  frag- 
ments fall  useless  and  worn  out  on  to  the  great 
scrap  heap  which  constitutes  the  history  of  a  peo- 
ple. On  the  island  each  man  felt  in  vain  for 
his  accustomed  setting,  and,  finding  it  not,  blamed 
the  others.  Here  each  must  live  to  himself  and 
grasp  more  strongly  the  strength  that  was  still  in 
him,  cling  to  it,  lean  upon  it,  and  if  it  were  strong 
enough  live  by  virtue  of  its  endurance.  Every 
morning  the  sun  came  up  out  of  a  clear  and  cloud- 
less sky  and  blazed  with  an  unpitying  and  avid 
glare  upon  the  sand-dunes  and  scant  vegetation. 
The  sand  became  hot  underfoot  and  the  men's  eyes 
were  red  and  swollen.  Every  day  the  natives 
toiled,  making  useless  roadways  across  the  sand. 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      81 

and  Sherwin,  morose  and  moody,  superintended 
the  work,  and  woe  betide  the  man  who  shirked. 
Hicksey  worked  incessantly  with  a  fanatical  in- 
sistence, lived  in  his  own  thoughts  and  hopes  of 
future  fame,  in  a  great  ambition.  Hubbard  w^as 
the  worst  off  of  the  three;  he  wrote  much  in  his 
journal,  sat  idly  on  the  verandah,  and  longed  for 
a  companion  of  his  own  class  and  temperament; 
sometimes  he  was  frightened  by  a  glimpse  of  his 
own  isolation  and  weakness.  Thus  the  days 
passed,  followed  by  black  nights  and  a  heaven  full 
of  glittering  stars ;  then  the  three  men  returned  to 
their  houses  to  be  waited  on  by  the  silent  savage 
who  moved  like  a  shadow,  spoke  little,  noticed  all, 
and  marvelled  at  their  isolation.  And  after  those 
short  nights  followed  once  more  the  dull  monotony 
of  the  days.  The  sun  flung  upon  the  islands  its 
sheaf  of  burning  rays,  and  every  morning  after  a 
night  of  pain  and  anxiety  Sherwin  would  ask 
eagerly  about  his  hand,  recount  his  symptoms,  and 
beg  for  some  assurance.  And  yet  in  spite  of  regu- 
lar treatment,  his  hand  became  no  better.  The 
liope  that  had  been  kindled  by  the  doctor's  return 
died  down  and  he  became  daily  more  savage  and 
depressed.  One  morning  when  Hubbard  was  re- 
moving the  bandages  Hicksey  happened  to  come 
into  the  room  to  fetch  some  instruments  that  he 


82      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

had  forgotten.  Sherwin  looked  with  distress  and 
anxiety  at  the  swollen  and  putrescent  mass  that 
had  once  been  his  finger. 

*'If  you  don't  mind,  doctor,  I  should  like  Dr. 
Hicksey  to  have  a  look  at  my  hand ;  I  should  like 
to  know  what  he  thinks  of  it." 

"Yes,  certainly,  show  it  to  him,"  said  Hubbard. 
He  was  a  little  embarrassed  that  Hicksey  should 
see  what  a  bad  state  the  man's  hand  was  in. 
Turning  to  the  young  man  he  added :  "You  see  a 
nasty  state  of  blood-poisoning;  he  can't  expect  to 
get  well  in  a  day  or  two,  but  I  think  my  treatment 
has  made  it  a  little  better." 

Hicksey  took  the  man's  hand  gently  into  his 
own,  for  two  minutes  he  looked  at  it  in  silence. 
Then:     "Do  you  feel  that?" 

"No." 

"That?" 

"No." 

Then  squeezing  his  arm:  "Do  you  feel  pain 
here?" 

"Yes." 

For  a  moment  or  two  longer  he  looked  at  the 
sore  finger,  then  let  the  hand  go,  turned  and 
walked  slowly  to  one  of  the  shelves,  found  the 
things  that  he  had  come  in  search  of,  and  walked 
without  any  comment  out  of  the  room.  The  two 
men  had  been  watching  his  movements,  expecting 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   83 

every  moment  to  see  him  come  back  and  further 
investigate  the  wound.  They  could  hardly  be- 
lieve that  he  should  go  out  without  a  word ;  neither 
of  them  had  suspected  his  intention,  and  now  they 
were  left  looking  with  astonishment  at  the  closed 
door. 

All  Sherwin's  worst  fears  leapt  in  his  breast; 
this  was  no  doubt  more  serious  than  Hubbard  had 
supposed.  With  a  white  and  anxious  face  he  re- 
garded the  flushed  annoyance  of  the  doctor. 
*'What  do  you  think  he  means  by  that?"  he 
queried. 

^'I  don't  know  what  he  means.  He's  a  can- 
tankerous beggar,  full  of  moods.  He  can't  take 
the  trouble  to  be  decently  civil,"  complained  Hub- 
bard, exasperated  to  speaking  out.  ^'I  wish  he'd 
never  come  on  to  the  islands." 

Sherwin  was  occupied  with  purely  personal 
thoughts.  ^'I  think  he  means  my  hand's  pretty 
bad.     I  know  it  isn't  getting  any  better."     Then 

emphatically :    ''By  G I'll  make  him  speak" ; 

and  he  made  off  after  Hicksey. 

Left  alone  in  the  room  Hubbard  was  undecided 
whether  he  would  follow  or  not.  He  knew  that 
Hicksey's  silence  was  meant  as  the  severest  criti- 
cism on  his  work.  It  was  a  deliberate  insult. 
He  knew  too  that  Hicksey  was  very  angry,  and 
that  if  he  followed  there  would  be  a  crisis.     He 


84     WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

walked  up  and  down  the  room  in  indecision.  No, 
he  would  keep  out  of  it;  better  that  he  stayed 
where  he  was,  at  any  rate  for  a  minute  or  two, 
then  perhaps  later  he  might  go  and  see  what  had 
happened.  He  sat  down  and  thought  about  the 
situation.  No  doubt  the  hand  was  pretty  bad, 
and  it  was  getting  better  very  slowly.  But  damn 
that  young  fellow  with  his  interfering,  superior 
ways.  For  his  own  dignity  he  must  go  and  see 
what  was  happening. 

Hicksey  was  just  outside  the  hospital  when 
Sherwin  overtook  him.  'Tor  the  love  of  God, 
doctor,  tell  me  what  is  the  matter  with  my  hand." 

Hicksey  regarded  the  great  burly  figure  of  the 
man  whose  soul,  in  such  dire  distress,  looked  en- 
treatingly  from  his  eyes.  For  a  few  moments  he 
seemed  nervous  and  embarrassed,  and  his  white 
face  twitched;  then  in  words  he  found  an  outlet 
for  the  force  of  his  controlled  indignation.  He 
spoke  deliberately,  and,  as  was  his  habit,  slowly, 
every  word  bitten  off  clean.  *'The  same  thing  is 
the  matter  with  your  finger  as  is  the  matter  with 
the  whole  island,  with  the  hospital  and  everything 
in  it." 

Sherwin  looked  frightened.  "You  mean  he  is 
not  treating  it  the  right  way?" 

Hicksey  suddenly  flared  out :  "How  do  you  ex- 
pect a  damned  incompetent  sluggard  to  treat  any- 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      85 

thing  the  right  way  ?  It  gets  worse  every  day,  and 
he  dabs  it  with  antiseptic  and  calls  that  treatment. 
Your  finger's  past  saving.  If  you  don't  have  it 
off  at  once  you  may  lose  your  hand." 

Sherwin's  usually  red  face  had  turned  to  a 
pallid  pink,  which  made  an  unpleasant  contrast 
with  his  ginger  beard.  For  a  while  he  gulped  as 
if  something  had  stuck  in  his  throat.  ''Is  there 
nothing  else  that  can  be  done?"  Then  he  added 
almost  pathetically:  "It's  the  first  finger  of  my 
right  hand  and  I  don't  want  to  lose  it." 

"You  ought  to  have  had  it  off  a  week  ago;  it 
could  have  come  off  then  at  the  second  joint,  now 
it  will  have  to  be  taken  right  back  to  the  hand." 

Just  as  the  savage  who  has  been  bitten  by  a 
poisonous  snake  says  that  he  has  been  scratched 
by  a  thorn,  and  as  the  consumptive  assures  one 
that  he  has  only  a  cold,  so  Sherwin  tried  to  dis- 
believe that  he  must  lose  his  first  finger  on  his 
right  hand.  He  could  not  so  quickly  realize  his 
ill-fortune,  but  stood  as  if  stupefied  by  a  blow, 
looking  silent  and  puzzled  at  the  sand  at  his  feet. 

At  that  moment  Hubbard  appeared,  walking 
leisurely  over  the  dunes.  As  he  approached  he 
tried  to  seem  at  ease.  "Well,  what  has  Dr.  Hick- 
sey  to  say  to  the  case?" 

Sherwin  looked  up  fiercely  as  if  at  last  realiz- 
ing the  necessities  of  the  moment.     He  walked  to 


86      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Hubbard,  then  roared  at  him:  "He  says  I've  got 
to  have  my  finger  off.  Says  I've  got  to  lose  my 
finger  because  you've  neglected  your  work.  If 
that's  so,  by  God,  I'll  have  the  law  on  you;  I'll 
make  you  pay  for  this." 

Hubbard  was  one  of  those  inconsiderable  peo- 
ple, who  when  frightened  try  to  escape  by  bluster. 
He  got  very  red  and  tried  to  shout  Sherwin  down. 
''How  dare  you  speak  to  me  like  that  ?  How  dare 
you?  I  dismiss  you  at  once.  Do  you  hear,  I 
won't  have  you  on  the  island.     I  dismiss  you." 

Sherwin  stepped  forward  and  the  doctor  stepped 
back  quickly  out  of  reach  of  the  sound  left  hand 
that  was  ominously  clenched,  and  called  out  in 
alarm:  "Dr.  Hicksey,  will  you  please  explain 
things.  What  is  this  nonsense  about  having  his 
finger  off?  It  is  not  as  bad  as  all  that.  It  was 
three  weeks  getting  into  a  bad  state,  and  I  can't 
be  expected  to  put  it  right  in  a  few  hours.  Surely 
you  can't  seriously  think  that  an  operation  is  nec- 
essary?" 

Hicksey  had  no  particular  desire  to  help  the 
doctor,  and  had  no  inclination  to  speak  anything 
but  the  truth.  "Unless  he  has  his  finger  off  in  the 
next  day  or  two,  he  will  lose  his  hand.  The 
sooner  he  has  it  off  the  better.  He  ought  to  have 
been  operated  on  a  week  ago." 

For  some  seconds  there  was  silence  while  the 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED      87 

facts  of  the  situation  made  themselves  felt.  Hub- 
bard expostulated.  ''But  I  consider  an  operation 
absolutely  unnecessary.  I  refuse  to  have  any- 
thing to  do  with  it."  Then  suddenly,  seeing  a 
way  of  escape,  he  flared  out  at  Hicksey.  ''Dr. 
Hicksey,  I  consider  you  responsible  for  the  whole 
of  this  unnecessary  scene.  You  haye  always  set 
yourself  in  opposition  to  me  and  have  set  yourself 
in  antagonism  throughout.  I  shall  report  your 
conduct  at  headquarters.  If  the  man  is  fool 
enough  to  take  your  advice  then  you  must  take  the 
whole  responsibility.  If  you  choose  needlesly  to 
mutilate  him,  do  so  at  your  own  risk." 

Sherwin  was  dumbfounded.  Here  were  these 
two  men  making  a  professional  quarrel  of  what 
had  been  for  him  the  pain  and  agony  of  the  last 
month.  For  a  moment  he  hated  them  both  for 
their  callous  indifference.  But  one  of  them  was 
right — which  was  he  to  trust?  For  only  an  in-i 
stant  did  he  hesitate,  then  he  knew  that  Hicksey 
was  the  better  man.  "Dr.  Hicksey,"  he  said,  "I'll 
take  your  word  for  it.  I'd  sooner  have  my  finger 
off  than  risk  the  losing  of  my  hand.  I've  had  this 
pain  for  three  weeks  up  my  arm  and  down  my 
side;  anything  to  be  rid  of  it."  Then,  infuriated 
at  the  thought  of  his  loss,  he  turned  to  Hubbard : 
"If  I  had  my  hands  I'd  break  you;  I'd  make  you 
pay  for  this." 


88      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Hicksey  cut  him  short:  ''Don't  waste  your 
time  in  threats."  He  gave  a  short  laugh  and 
kicked  savagely  at  the  sand  as  though  to  empha- 
size his  joke.  "You  had  far  better  ask  Dr.  Hub- 
bard to  give  you  chloroform;  you'll  need  his  help 
at  the  operation." 

This  remark  seemed  to  enrage  Hubbard  more 
than  anything  else.  "I  will  have  nothing  what- 
ever to  do  with  the  operation.  You  act  against 
my  order,  against  my  advice.  Do  your  own 
butcher's  work."  He  strode  away  blustering  with 
indignation. 

In  the  afternoon  the  operation  was  performed. 
Dr.  Hicksey  gave  Sherwin  a  gag  to  bite  on  and 
did  the  best  he  could  to  allay  pain  with  local 
anaesthetics.  He  was  fairly  pleased  with  his  work 
and  assured  Sherwin  that  he  would  soon  recover. 

That  evening  at  supper  both  doctors  chose  to 
ignore  the  events  of  the  day,  and  although  Hub- 
bard felt  sore  and  outraged,  and  Hicksey  was  furi- 
ous at  the  elder  man's  behaviour,  they  were  both 
civil  to  one  another,  recognizing  the  necessity  of 
having  to  live  together  and  of  hiding  from  the  na- 
tives the  fact  that  there  was  between  them  any  ill- 
feeling.  The  knowledge  that  they  were  bound  to 
this  strained  civility  made  them  hate  each  other 
the  more,  and  as  the  surface  waves  of  their  dis- 
turbed emotions   sank  to  rest,   the  accustomed 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      89 

monotony  settled  upon  the  island.  Both  men  were 
careful  that  there  should  be  no  occasion  for  fur- 
ther friction,  and  each  lived  to  himself  a  life  of  his 
own  thoughts.  Sherwin's  hand  got  steadily  bet- 
ter, and  as  it  healed  his  spirits  rose  and  he  began 
once  again  to  joke  with  the  natives  and  domineer 
over  the  faithful  Coffee.  He  took  again  to  his 
evening  drink  of  Kava,  though  he  was  careful  not 
to  let  the  other  white  men  know  of  this.  He  was 
not  sure  what  they  might  think  of  him  for  taking 
to  a  native  drink. 

About  ten  days  after  the  operation  the  two  doc- 
tors left  the  island.  Hubbard  had  hoped  that 
Hicksey  might  be  persuaded  to  stay  on  Kanna,  but 
no,  he  said  that  there  were  cases  he  wished  to  re- 
turn to  at  the  hospital,  and  that  he  would  go  back. 
Hubbard  could  make  no  objections,  and  so  once 
more  in  silent  antagonism  they  set  out  on  the  re- 
turn journey. 

As  the  "Shark"  bore  them  away  towards  Fen- 
ton  Island,  and  the  white  triangle  of  the  sail  now 
and  then  threw  back  a  reflection,  Sherwin  stood 
upon  the  high  sand  hill  between  the  two  houses 
and  watched  it  become  smaller  and  finally  disap- 
pear. He  was  glad  that  the  two  doctors  were 
gone.  He  had  come  lately  to  dislike  and  despise 
Hubbard — yes,  and  he  disliked  Hicksey,  though 
he  respected  him.     He  would  like  to  have  had 


90      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

him  as  a  friend,  but  there  was  something  in  Hick- 
sey  that  rejected  this  friendly  feeling  and  so  Sher- 
win  experienced  an  instinctive  and  unreasoning 
antagonism.  Now  he  was  glad  to  be  alone  once 
again  and  to  renew  the  comfortable  and  independ- 
ent life  of  the  early  days. 

As  he  looked  round  he  saw  stretching  beneath 
him  the  island  of  bays  and  headlands,  of  thickets 
and  sweeping  sand-dunes,  and  there,  away  in  the 
distance,  was  the  native  hospital  and  the  men  to 
whom  his  word  was  law.  He  was  once  more  mas- 
ter of  all  that  he  surveyed. 


CHAPTER  VII 

IT  is  a  noteworthy  fact  about  human  nature, 
that  it  is  easier  for  one  man  than  for  two  to 
bear  isolation.  It  is  still  more  difficult  for 
four  or  five.  As  the  slow  weeks  of  heat  and 
monotony  passed  over  Fenton  Island  the  members 
of  the  white  settlement  found  it  more  and  more 
difficult  to  tolerate  one  another,  and  the  position 
gradually  defined  itself  into  a  deliberate  plot  to 
get  rid  of  the  young  doctor,  to  make  things  so  un- 
pleasant for  him  that  he  would  have  to  go.  There 
were  five  white  people,  compelled  by  circumstance 
to  meet  every  day,  and  there  was  one  too  many. 
The  campaign  was  led  by  the  women.  They 
hated  Hicksey,  partly  because  he  took  little  notice 
of  them,  and  partly  because  he  was  obviously  a 
superior  human  being  to  the  two  men  whom  they 
did  like. 

Hubbard  had  told  them  his  version  of  the  in- 
cident of  Sherwin's  finger  and  they  were  right- 
eously indignant.  Oh,  yes,  if  he  was  so  keen  on 
cutting  up  monkeys  and  other  animals,  no  doubt 
he  was  glad  enough  to  have  an  opportunity  to  cut 
up  a  man.     These  things  were  not  said  in  his 

91 


92   WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

hearing,  but  whispered,  and  all  helped  to  increase 
the  feeling  that  he  was  an  intruder.  What  had 
been  in  the  past  a  passive  dislike  now  became  an 
active  warfare.  Hubbard  just  kept  within  the 
bounds  of  politeness,  and  the  nurses,  whenever 
they  got  an  opportunity,  made  provoking  and  in- 
solent remarks.  James  alone  was  civil;  he  rather 
liked  Hicksey,  admitted  frankly  that  he  was  his 
superior  in  knowledge,  and  he  would  like  to  have 
b^een  on  friendly  terms. 

Although  Hicksey  did  not  much  mind  the  isola- 
tion, the  constant  pin-pricks  were  an  annoyance. 
He  despised  Hubbard  more  than  ever  for  letting 
the  women  fight  his  battles.  He  saw  what  they 
were  aiming  at,  and  since  he  had  no  intention  of 
leaving  the  islands,  was  particularly  careful  to 
keep  control  of  his  temper.  No  one  got  much 
pleasure  out  of  the  persecution,  but  it  afforded 
something  to  talk  about. 

These  people,  cut  off  as  they  were  from  the 
amusements  and  interests  of  civilization,  might 
have  found,  had  they  had  the  imagination,  a  qual- 
ity of  wonder  in  the  ever-changing  tropical  life 
of  the  island. 

As  it  was,  they  found  it  more  to  their  minds  to 
amuse  themselves  by  trying  in  a  petty  and 
malicious  way  to  exasperate  Dr.  Hicksey.  What 
perhaps  made  them  at  this  time  particularly  sensi- 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED      93 

tive  was  that  since  Dr.  Hubbard  had  returned  he 
had  spent  much  of  his  time  in  company  with  Nurse 
Toms,  no  doubt  obtaining  sympathy  and  consola- 
tion. By  this  the  sensitive  balance  of  the  situation 
was  disturbed,  and  Nurse  Hilton  benefited  by  the 
occasion  to  get  engaged  to  James.  Each  woman 
resented  the  behaviour  of  the  other,  and  the  atti- 
tude of  mutual  vigilance  was  never  abandoned. 
In  a  kind  of  desperate  self-vindication  they  as- 
sumed a  pose  of  ferocious  virginity,  which  some- 
where in  the  depths  of  their  hearts  they  felt  to  be 
artificial  and  ludicrous.  It  was  galling  enough 
to  find  themselves  in  such  a  situation,  unable  to 
escape  from  their  immediate  surroundings  and  cut 
off  from  all  the  rest  of  mankind,  but  that  Hick- 
sey  should  remain  untouched  and  free  to  criticize, 
exasperated  them  to  the  utmost.  Their  resent- 
ment naturally  turned  against  him,  and  as  time 
passed  the  situation  daily  became  less  tolerable. 
One  hot  windy  day  it  came  suddenly  to  a  head  and 
brought  more  serious  consequences  than  any  one 
had  anticipated. 

The  party  were  at  lunch,  and  Dr:  Hubbard  had 
just  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Keynes,  the  head  of 
the  aborigines  department,  saying  that  he  was 
coming  for  a  short  visit  to  the  island,  and  that  he 
hoped  to  see  both  doctors  and  to  receive  reports 
on  the  work  upon  which  they  were  engaged. 


94      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

Both  of  the  nurses  looked  significantly  at  Hick- 
^ey.  "I  expect  he  will  be  very  interested  in  your 
experiments,  Dr.  Hicksey,"  said  Nurse  Hilton. 
^'I  daresay  in  Kingstown  they  know  nothing  about 
your  having  animals  here  for  vivisection.  No 
doubt  Mr.  Keynes  will  be  interested  with  an  ac- 
count of  your  experiments.'^ 

Hubbard  laughed  and  said  in  a  facetious  way: 
"Ah,  these  young  enthusiasts!  They  are  not  al- 
ways content  with  experimenting  on  animals. 
They  like  to  have  a  human  being  to  cut  up  every 
now  and  then." 

This  open  insult,  coming  on  top  of  the  pin- 
pricks and  annoyances  of  the  last  month,  was  too 
much  for  Hicksey.  He  stood  up  in  his  place, 
white  and  trembling  with  suppressed  rage;  his 
hands  played  nervously  on  the  back  of  his  chair: 
"Dr.  Hubbard,  I  should  like  to  see  you  outside, 
please." 

"Come,  come,  that  was  only  a  joke;  there  is  no 
reason  to  get  so  excited." 

"There  is  this  reason,  that  I  do  not  choose  to  be 
insulted  by  a  man  who  is  a  disgrace  to  the  profes- 
sion that  he  follows." 

Hubbard  turned  crimson  and  jumped  up,  push- 
ing his  chair  back.  It  fell  with  a  crash.  "How 
dare  you  speak  to  me  like  that.  Sir?" 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED      95 

^'Because  I've  just  asked  you  to  come  on  to  the 
verandah." 

The  two  men  were  now  equally  angry.  They 
faced  each  other  across  the  table,  and  the  nurses 
looked  on  surprised  and  rather  scared.  James 
made  some  feeble  protest  which  passed  unnoticed. 
They  were  all  excited  and  rather  pleased  at  the 
turn  things  had  taken,  and  were  possessed  by  that 
inevitable  desire  of  all  human  beings  to  witness  a 
fight.  The  women  were  glad  that  the  little  whip- 
per-snapper was  to  be  taught  a  lesson.  They 
hoped  Hubbard  would  give  him  a  thorough  drub- 
bing. 

Hubbard  was  in  appearance  far  the  larger  and 
stronger  man,  and  as  he  led  the  way  out  he  looked 
so  considerably  the  more  powerful  that  there 
seemed  little  doubt  of  the  issue.  He  walked  to  the 
other  end  of  the  verandah  and  took  off  his  coat. 
Hicksey  did  not  remove  his,  but  waited  till  the 
other  should  be  ready.  He  was  vaguely  conscious 
of  the  brilliant  white  glare  of  the  sand,  of  a 
metallic  taste  in  his  mouth  and  of  the  women 
pushing  behind  him  to  get  a  better  view. 

No  one  knew  quite  what  happened,  least  of  all 
Hubbard,  who  was  expecting  the  attack  of  an  Eng- 
lish gentleman  in  a  sparring  match ;  but  such  re- 
fined conventions  had  been  left  far  behind  with 


96      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

the  rest  of  the  paraphernalia  of  civilization.  For 
two  months  those  five  people  had  been  living  to- 
gether confined  on  one  small  island.  One  of 
them  was  superfluous,  and  he  knew  it,  the  others 
wanted  him  away.  In  a  slightly  more  primitive 
society  his  death  would  have  been  assured;  as  it 
was  they  had  done  all  they  could  to  make  his  life 
intolerable,  and  now,  as  they  all  gathered  under 
the  heat-stricken  roof  of  the  verandah,  they  knew 
that  the  savage  in  each  of  them  was  close  under 
the  surface  waiting  to  show  himself.  They  all 
knew  that  he  was  there.  Hicksey  felt  the  primi- 
tive danger,  and  his  primitive  instinct  responded, 
turning  the  conflict  into  a  fight  of  life  and 
death.  Before  any  one  knew  what  had  hap- 
pened Hicksey  had  rushed  in  and  driven  his 
knee  into  Hubbard's  stomach  and  had  leapt  upon 
him  with  all  the  accumulated  fury  of  the  last 
few  weeks.  Down  they  went,  Hubbard  under- 
neath, Hicksey  with  both  hands  at  his  throat 
trying  to  choke  the  life  out  of  him  and  bumping 
his  head  up  and  down  on  the  boards  of  the  floor. 
Hubbard  was  purple  in  the  face  and  choking  for 
life.  Both  nurses  screamed  and  rushed  to  the 
rescue.  They  flung  themselves  on  Hicksey,  tore 
at  his  hair,  scratched  at  his  eyes,  and  one  bit  the 
fingers  tightened  on  the  doctor's  throat.  At  last, 
with  James'  help,  they  managed  to  pull  him  off, 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   97 

and  only  just  in  time,  for  Hubbard  was  nearly 
choked,  and  lay  for  some  minutes  on  the  ground 
gasping  for  breath.  Hicksey,  scratched  and 
bleeding,  had  been  thrown  back  against  the  side 
of  the  verandah.  He  clutched  at  the  rail  with  a 
shaking  hand  now  and  then  giving  curious  little 
whimpers  of  emotion.  James  stood  over  the  body 
of  the  fallen  man,  with  one  hand  he  restrained 
Nurse  Hilton  who  with  excitement  would  have 
sprung  at  Hicksey.  The  muscles  of  her  cheeks 
twitched  like  the  twisted  knots  in  a  taut  rope,  and 
she  panted  inarticulate  abuse.  Nurse  Toms  had 
sunk  to  the  ground  and  was  shaken  with  sobs. 
In  all  these  people  something  extraordinarily  pow- 
erful and  fundamental  had  suddenly  leapt  to  the 
surface.  It  had  been  free  for  a  moment,  now  it 
was  again  restrained,  yet  it  still  clamoured  and 
screamed  for  its  proper  food.  It  shook  and  tore 
at  the  frail  prison  of  flesh  in  which  it  was  con- 
tained. A  very  real  part  of  human  nature  that 
had  lived  deep  down,  hidden  in  some  dungeon, 
had  surprised  and  appalled  them  by  its  fierce  lust 
for  freedom,  and  now  shook  them  with  shame  and 
fear  at  its  immense  strength.  And  yet  it  was 
restrained  by  some  bond,  by  some  fragment  per- 
haps of  conscience  that  remained,  a  vestige  of  the 
civilization  amongst  which  they  had  once  lived. 
As  their  eyeS  met,  that  force,  whatever  it  was,  told 


98      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

them  that  the  beast  must  be  pushed  back.  Shame 
pushed  it  back  into  its  dungeon.  It  returned, 
grumbling  and  discontented,  to  abide  in  patience 
its  proper  time.  James  was  the  first  to  recover 
himself;  he  stepped  towards  Hicksey.  "Dr. 
Hicksey,"  he  said,  "you  had  better  come  with  me 
to  your  room  and  wash  yourself."  Then,  turn- 
ing to  the  nurses,  "Will  you  please  look  after  Dr. 
Hubbard  and  see  that  he  is  properly  cared  for." 
He  took  Hicksey's  arm  and  walked  him  off  the 
verandah. 

Now  that  the  rage  of  conflict  and  passion  of 
slaughter  had  become  stilled,  Hicksey  felt  an  im- 
perative desire  to  justify  himself.  Someone 
would  surely  understand  how  much  he  had  had  to 
put  up  with.  The  women  didn't  count,  they  of 
course  would  be  hostile;  he  didn't  wish  them  to 
understand,  but  James,  who  did,  as  he  knew,  care 
for  his  work,  must  of  necessity  sympathize,  and  at 
that  moment  he  passionately  needed  sympathy  In 
a  voice  that  was  almost  pleading  he  poured  out  his 
grievance.  "Tell  me,  didn't  he  deserve  a  thrash- 
ing? Most  of  the  time  that  I've  been  here  I've 
been  kept  from  my  proper  work  doing  the  work 
that  he  is  too  incompetent  and  lazy  to  perform.  I 
have  worked  while  he  stood  idle,  and  all  the  while 
he  has  hated  me  and  sneered  at  me.  I  saved  Sher- 
win's  hand,  when  in  another  week  he  would  have 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       99 

lost  his  arm,  and  now  the  fool  insults  my  work,  a 
thing  that  he  has  never  understood,  a  thing 
he  could  never  understand.  He  pretends  that 
I  am  just  a  wanton  experimenter  and  sneers  at 
what  he  has  no  right  to  speak  about."  He  was 
w^orked  up  to  a  further  burst  of  indignation;  he 
seized  the  young  man's  arm  and  shouted:  "I  tell 
you  I  am  glad  to  have  thrashed  him."  James 
was  embarrassed  at  his  vehemence,  and  was  a  little 
afraid  that  he  might  again  attack  Hubbard,  who 
with  the  help  of  the  two  women  was  struggling  to 
his  feet.  "Come  to  your  room,  doctor,  come  to 
your  room  and  we  will  talk  things  over  there." 

After  Hicksey  had  plunged  his  head  into  water 
and  washed  and  dried  himself,  he  looked  once 
more  the  well-controlled  and  civilized  man  who 
had  come  to  the  island.  His  eyes  alone,  shining 
with  intense  excitement,  betrayed  the  tumult  of 
his  feelings. 

He  made  no  other  allusion  to  the  events  of  the 
afternoon,  but  only  asked:  "How  long  is  it  be- 
fore Mr.  Keynes  comes?  Hubbard  spoke  of  him 
as  coming  in  a  day  or  two,  I  think?" 

"Yes,  I  believe  he  is  expected  to-morrow  or  the 
next  day." 

"I  am  glad  he  is  coming";  then,  after  a  short 
pause,  "Tell  Dr.  Hubbard  that  for  the  next  few 
days  I  will  have  my  meals  brought  to  me  in  my 


100      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

room.  I  think  it  is  better  that  we  should  not  meet." 
The  next  few  days  were  indeed  trying  ones  for 
Hicksey.  He  felt  that  everyone's  hand  was 
against  him,  and  even  James,  who  had,  until  now, 
stood  in  with  him,  did  not  conceal  that  he  was 
horrified  and  shocked  at  the  savagery  of  his  at- 
tack. There  was  something  about  it  un-English 
that  outraged  the  young  man. 

It  was  obvious  to  Hicksey  that  he  was  certain  to 
be  dismissed  from  the  island  and  that  all  his  work 
and  the  fine  opportunities  he  had  for  future  work 
would  be  wasted ;  and  wasted,  he  thought  with  ex- 
asperation, on  account  of  that  lazy  and  despicable 
weakling,  whose  existence  had  no  right  to  influence 
a  thing  so  important  and  dignified  as  his  own  ca- 
reer. Well,  now  that  he  was  committed  by  what 
had  happened  he  would  make  no  effort  to  save 
himself,  but  would  wait  in  solitude,  and,  so  far  as 
he  could  manage,  in  indifference  till  he  received 
his  dismissal.  But  how  could  he  be  indifferent 
when  such  prospects  and  opportunities  for  work 
were  to  be  snatched  away?  Then  again  he  would 
fall  into  the  revolving  circle  of  his  thought  and 
curse  at  Hubbard,  hating  him  not  so  much  for  his 
personal  affronts,  as  because,  with  his  genial 
stupidity  and  incompetence,  he  stood  in  the  way 
of  a  life  better  than  his  ow^n  and  disgraced  the 
profession  that  he  followed. 


WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOvSEO       loi- 

When  Mr.  Keynes  arrived  on  the  ''Shark," 
Hicksey  did  not  go  down  with  the  others  to  meet 
him,  but  waited  in  his  room,  determined  in  no 
way  to  plead  for  himself. 

Mr.  Keynes,  who  was  head  of  the  aborigines  de- 
partment, and  who  was  responsible  for  the  found- 
ing of  the  hospitals,  was  an  idealist  in  spite  of  the 
experiences  of  a  fairly  long  and  very  varied  life. 
He  was  the  sort  of  idealist  who  tries  to  put  his 
ideas  into  practice,  has  great  faith  in  mankind 
because  he  has  good  reason  to  have  great  faith  in 
himself.  He  was  a  man  of  fifty  years,  who  had 
made  a  way  for  himself  by  virtue  of  his  intelli- 
gence and  power.  He  had  followed  several  ardu* 
ous  and  dangerous  trades,  had  lived  always  close 
to  the  earth,  and  had  drawn  from  it  inspiration  for 
his  numerous  schemes  and  a  great  faith  in  the 
future  of  his  country,  that  young  country  that  had 
given  him  birth,  and  in  whose  service  he  had  spent 
the  best  years  of  his  life.  In  his  youth  he  had 
been  an  "overlander,"  and  had  taken  cattle  long 
journeys  across  country  from  one  settlement  to  an- 
other; then  he  had  been  surveyor  for  the  Govern- 
ment, then  for  three  years  had  led  an  expedition 
across  the  interior,  making  a  stock-route  and  sink- 
ing wells  where  there  had  been  nothing  but  desert 
sand  and  wind-swept  clumps  of  spinifex.  Now 
he  had  risen  to  power,  was  a  member  of  Parlia- 


102      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

merit,  and  had  schemes  for  improving  the  natives 
amongst  whom  he  had  spent  so  much  of  his  life 
and  whom  he  had  come  to  like  and  respect.  He 
had  dreams  of  making  them  into  a  useful  and 
self-reliant  people.  What  he  now  wanted 
was  serviceable  men  who  would  carry  out  his 
schemes  and  who  could  be  trusted  to  do  their 
work. 

It  was  late  in  the  evening  when  he  knocked  at 
Hicksey's  door.  He  had  spent  all  the  afternoon 
with  Hubbard  and  had  heard  all  his  complaints 
against  the  young  man.  He  had  listened  in  his 
quiet  way,  nodding  his  head  from  time  to  time  to 
the  doctor's  petulant  request  that  Hicksey  should 
be  instantly  dismissed  from  the  islands.  Now  he 
w^as  going  to  hear  what  was  to  be  said  on  the  other 
side. 

Hicksey  opened  the  door  to  him. 

"Good  evening,  Dr.  Hicksey.  I  should  like  to 
have  a  talk  with  you;  will  you  come  for  a  walk 
with  me  along  the  beach?" 

Hicksey  assented;  he  asked  Keynes  to  come  in 
while  he  put  in  order  the  things  at  which  he  had 
been  working.  Keynes  was  pleased  at  the  orderly, 
business-like  look  of  the  room,  and  Hicksey  saw 
that  there  he  had  a  man  to  deal  with  whom  he 
could  respect  and  like.  They  were  silent  as  they 
walked  over  the  dunes,  and  it  was  not  till  they 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   103 

reached  the  flat  expanse  of  yellow  sand  that 
Keynes  spoke. 

*'I  hear  you  two  doctors  have  not  been  able  to 
hit  it  off  very  well.  There's  some  story  of  a  fight. 
Hubbard  tells  me  you  tried  to  murder  him  on  the 
verandah.  It's  a  pity  that  two  white  men,  and 
educated  men  too,  who  should  work  together  and 
back  each  other  up,  should  behave  in  that  way." 

Hicksey  spoke  deliberately  and  rather  slowly. 
He  did  not  wish  to  appear  excitable  or  nervous. 
"Yes,  I  lost  my  temper;  there  are  some  things  I 
cannot  endure." 

"Hubbard  tells  me  that  there  was  some  quarrel 
about  this  man  Sherwin.  He  tells  me  that  you 
operated  against  his  instructions  and  advice." 

"If  I  had  not  operated  the  man  would  have 
lost  his  hand.  It  was  shameful  neglect  to  let  it 
get  to  that  state;  but  when  I  saw  him  there  was 
nothing  to  be  done  short  of  an  operation.  And 
then  Hubbard  had  the  insincerity  to  insinuate  that 
I  had  taken  the  man's  finger  off  for  the  fun  of  the 
experiment." 

"What  do  you  mean  by  neglected?" 

"Have  you  been  over  the  hospital?" 

"Yes." 

"Well,  things  were  worse  than  that — so  much 
worse,  that  if  you  had  not  seen  you  would  find 
it  hard  to  believe.     When  I  first  went  over  to 


104      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Kanna  Island  I  found  four  of  the  natives  fly- 
blown, and  they  would  have  been  worse  if  it  hadn't 
been  for  Sherwin,  who  had  been  doing  the  doctor's 
work.  Hubbard  hadn't  been  over  there  for  six 
weeks.  Ever  since  then  I  have  been  doing  his 
work,  whereas  I  should  have  had  the  time  for 
my  own  research." 

"Perhaps  it  would  have  been  better  if  you  had 
stuck  to  your  own  work,"  said  Keynes,  looking 
sideways  at  his  man. 

Hicksey  fell  easily  into  the  little  trap.  "I 
couldn't  stand  by  and  see  things  so  badly  done, 
and  as  for  Sherwin,  he  would  have  lost  his  hand 
if  I  hadn't  operated  at  once"  For  a  short  while 
they  walked  along  the  beach  in  silence.  Then 
Keynes  said  in  his  even  voice:  "I  suppose  you 
guess  that  Hubbard  threatens  to  resign  unless  I 
order  you  to  leave  the  island?" 

"I  don't  blame  him,  I  would  do  the  same  in  his 
place." 

Keynes,  as  one  well  accustomed  to  judge  of  men 
and  situations,  had  not  taken  long  to  form  an  opin- 
ion of  the  two  doctors.  It  was  not  difficult  for 
him  to  recognize  a  fellow-enthusiast.  His  next 
remark  came  as  a  surprise  to  Hicksey.  "Now 
supposing  that  Dr.  Hubbard  were  to  resign,  would 
you  be  prepared  to  take  over  the  management  of 
the  two  hospitals?" 


WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED       105 

It  took  Hicksey  a  moment  to  answer.  "Would 
you  really  give  me  the  work?" 

"Do  you  think  you  could  manage  it?  You 
would  have  to  control  your  temper  and  re-establish 
good  feeling." 

"To  do  it  well  I  should  want  two  conditions. 
The  first  is,  that  I  should  want  a  properly  trained 
nurse  as  matron  under  me.  Someone  to  direct  and 
teach  the  two  women  who  are  already  here.  The 
second  is,  that  I  should  have  a  boat  that  I  myself 
could  sail  between  the  two  islands.  At  present 
we  are  altogether  dependent  on  the  pleasure  of 
Mr.  Pomfrey,  who  is  an  old  fellow,  difficult  to 
hurry,  and  over  whom  I  could  have  no  real  con- 
trol." 

"As  to  the  boat,  that's  fairly  easily  settled  and 
seems  reasonable  enough;  I  could  have  one  sent 
over  from  Kaimera." 

Hicksey  was  pleased  and  excited  at  the  prospect. 
He  cut  in:  "I  only  want  quite  a  small  boat — 
half-decked,  cutter-rigged,  the  sort  of  thing  I  can 
sail  by  myself." 

"Yes,  we  can  manage  that,"  Keynes  went  on; 
"but  the  other  is  more  difficult.  You  don't  find 
women  keen  after  a  lonely  job  of  this  sort.  I 
consider  myself  lucky  to  have  got  the  two  young 
women  who  are  here  already.  I  tried  a  year  ago 
to  get  a  properly  trained  nurse  but  no  one  would 


io6      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

come.  They  can  all  get  more  congenial  work,  and 
the  better  pay  doesn't  tempt  them.  There  was 
only  one  well-trained  nurse  that  I  could  hear  of, 
and  there  was  some  scandal  connected  with  her; 
she  seems  to  have  got  a  bad  name,  and  so  finds  it 
difficult  to  find  employment.  A  Miss  Desmond — 
I  would  have  engaged  her,  but  Hubbard  objected." 

"Is  she  good  at  her  work?"  asked  Hicksey. 

''Oh,  there  is  nothing  against  that;  I  believe  she 
is  a  very  good  nurse  indeed." 

"Then,  if  she's  good  at  her  work  I  don't  mind 
about  anything  else,  I  can  look  after  myself,"  said 
Hicksey  with  conviction. 

"If  you  take  this  post,  I  shall  expect  you  to 
stay  for  at  least  a  year.  Do  you  accept  it  on  those 
conditions?" 

Hicksey's  pleasure  at  the  unexpected  turn  things 
had  taken  could  no  longer  be  restrained.  "It's 
very  good  of  you,  Mr.  Keynes,  to  give  me  so  fine 
an  opportunity.     I'll  do  the  best  I  can." 

Keynes  was  no  doubt  pleased  at  the  young 
man's  enthusiasm,  but  he  answered  in  his  even, 
unemotional  voice:  "Well,  I  hope  you  will  make 
a  good  job  of  it.  I  rather  think  you  are  the  man 
I've  been  looking  for.  When  I  put  Hubbard  in  I 
thought  he  wasn't  the  right  man  for  the  place,  but 
I  couldn't  just  then  get  anybody  else.  Not  that  I 
think  Hubbard  a  bad  fellow,  but  he's  not  the  sort 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   107 

of  man  for  pioneer  work.  There  is  no  one  who 
has  a  bad  word  to  say  of  him,  and  that's  partly 
what  makes  me  think  he  is  too  easy-going.  These 
islands  want  a  man  with  initiative  and  a  man  who 
is  prepared  to  work  hard." 

They  had  turned  by  this  time  and  were  walking 
back  in  the  quickly  fading  light.  The  stars  were 
already  shining,  and  the  bushes  on  the  sand- 
dunes,  silhouetted  against  a  grey-pearl  sky,  looked 
like  hunched  creatures  waiting  to  spring.  'T  am 
going  away  in  the  'Shark'  the  day  after  to-mor- 
row," continued  Keynes;  "as  soon  as  I  leave,  you 
are  in  charge  of  everything  on  the  islands,  but  un- 
til then  I  should  advise  you  not  to  show  up.  The 
situation  will  be  difficult  and  you  had  better  leave 
it  to  me.  You  will  have  your  difficulties  with  the 
two  women,  with  whom  you  do  not  seem  very 
popular.  It  is  your  business  as  soon  as  I  have 
gone" — and  Keynes  said  this  with  emphasis — ''to 
smooth  away  all  this  bad  feeling.  Remember,  it 
will  be  for  you  and  not  for  them  to  make  the  first 
steps." 

Hicksey  assured  him  that  he  would  do  his  best. 
As  they  walked  back  they  talked  of  Keynes' 
schemes  for  the  development  of  the  hospitals,  and 
Hicksey  was  pleased  to  find  an  intelligent  and  un- 
derstanding interest  taken  in  his  own  work.  It 
was  dark  before  they  reached  the  house.     They 


io8      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

shook  hands  with  a  firm  grasp.  "Good-bye,  and 
good  luck,"  said  Keynes.  "I  will  put  things 
straight  with  Hubbard,  but  remember  it  falls  to 
you  to  establish  good  feeling  with  the  others.  For 
neither  of  us  will  it  be  very  easy." 

"I  will  do  my  best,"  said  Hicksey;  "good-bye, 
and  thank  you." 


^   CHAPTER  VIII 

TWO  months  later  Hicksey's  rule  was  well 
established.  The  hospitals  on  both 
islands  were  run  on  up-to-date  and  thor- 
ough lines,  the  wards  looked  well  scrubbed  and 
clean,  and  the  patients  were  washed  and  cared  for. 
The  new  matron  had  proved  to  be  a  trained  and 
thoroughly  capable  woman. 

When  Hicksey,  in  his  new  capacity  of  chief, 
had  visited  Sherwin  he  had  suggested  to  him  that 
he  should  become  definitely  employed  as  assistant 
at  the  Kanna  Island  hospital  and  receive  extra  pay 
for  his  services.  He  saw  that  Sherwin  was 
capable  and  well  able  to  be  taught,  and  since  he 
was  a  man  of  initiative  he  would  be  useful  to  have 
as  permanent  assistant.  Sherwin  had  readily 
agreed  to  this  suggestion  and  entertained,  for  a 
short  while,  the  hope,  now  that  he  and  the  doctor 
were  working  at  the  same  job,  that  their  relations 
might  become  more  friendly  and  intimate.  But  in 
this  he  was  disappointed  for  Hicksey  never  showed 
any  willingness  to  make  friends,  nor  did  he  let 

Sherwin  forget  for  a  moment  that  there  was  a  big 

109 


no   WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

gap  between  them,  constituted  by  their  difference 
in  education  and  birth. 

Hicksey  had  stayed  for  a  fortnight,  and  had 
instructed  him  in  his  new  duties,  and  all  had  gone 
smoothly  between  the  two  men,  in  spite  of  Sher- 
win's  growing  annoyance  and  disappointment. 
Hicksey  had  then  hurried  back  to  Fenton  Island 
to  receive  the  new  matron.  He  particularly 
wanted  to  be  there  when  she  arrived,  and  not  to 
expose  her  to  a  reception  from  the  two  nurses, 
who  both,  in  some  miraculous  way,  had  become 
acquainted  with  the  scandal  connected  with  her 
name,  and  who,  he  doubted  not,  would  receive  her 
with  pettiness  and  jealousy. 

Before  Keynes  had  left,  taking  Dr.  Hubbard 
away  with  him  on  the  "Shark,"  he  had  spoken  to 
the  two  young  women  and  given  them  some  severe 
and  kindly  advice.  They  were  both  very  fluttered 
and  excited  at  being  seriously  talked  to  by  a  man 
so  high  up  in  public  affairs,  and  decided  to  give 
Hicksey  another  chance,  and,  in  view  of  the  fact 
that  Hubbard  would  no  longer  be  on  the  island, 
this  they  felt  would  not  be  very  difficult.  There 
was  besides  some  instinct  of  their  sex  which 
prompted  them  to  be  friendly  with  their  new  chief. 
Their  feelings  towards  the  new  matron  were  not 
so  simple.  Instinctively  they  resented  the  advent 
of  another  woman  into  their  small  circle,  and  then 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   in 

there  was  the  galling  thought  that  she  was  to  be 
set  in  authority.  They  were  going  to  be  perfectly 
polite  and  amenable,  but  then  they  knew  (and  they 
were  going  to  let  her  know)  that  there  was  just 
something  about  her  that  was  not  quite  right,  and 
that  she  had  had  difficulty  in  getting  a  position 
elsewhere. 

It  was  perhaps  a  good  thing  that  Hicksey  had 
come  back  in  time  to  receive  her.  He  had  met  her 
on  the  beach,  and  the  next  day  had  shown  her  over 
the  hospital  and  talked  over  the  work.  In  all  this 
he  showed  a  friendly  formality,  that  he  hoped 
would  be  difficult  to  break  through  He  felt  that 
he  must  be  very  careful,  knowing  that  the  nurses 
would  be  eager  to  seize  on  the  first  opportunity  for 
gossip. 

Nurse  Desmond  was  a  good-looking  woman  of 
thirty-seven,  well-built  and  strong,  with  good  dark 
hair  and  a  pale  face,  a  smooth  wax-like  brow,  and 
dark,  arched  eyebrows.  She  spoke  in  a  low- 
pitched  voice  that  was  almost  a  whisper.  This 
was  a  strange  contrast  to  her  general  appearance 
and  upright  bearing.  On  the  way  over  she  talked 
with  old  Mr.  Pomfrey  and  heard  stories  of  the 
young  doctor  who  was  so  reckless  about  bathing 
among  the  sharks,  who  had  had  a  row  with  Dr. 
Hubbard,  had  fought  with  him,  and  nearly  killed 
him,  and  who  had  now  been  put  in  command  of 


112      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

the  hospitals  and  was  managing  them  in  an  al- 
together new  and  superior  manner.  "Ah,  he's  a 
fine  young  man,"  Pomfrey  concluded.  *'Mr. 
Keynes  was  pleased  enough,  I  can  guess,  to  get 
him  on  the  work  instead  of  Dr.  Hubbard."  Here 
was  material  sufficient  to  touch  a  woman's  imag- 
ination. 

When  sne  first  saw  the  doctor,  she  was  disap- 
pointed. He  was  too  slight  and  too  bony  for  the 
man  she  had  imagined,  but  yet  she  liked  him, 
and  this  liking  and  approval  grew  as  the  days 
passed  in  which  they  worked  together  at  the  hos- 
pital. As  workmen  they  were  both  thoroughly  ef- 
ficient, and  in  this  they  respected  one  another.  If 
Hicksey  were  doing  any  difficult  operation  he 
would  always  ask  Nurse  Desmond  to  help  rather 
than  either  of  the  others,  and  she  always  came  up 
to  his  expectations.  In  the  course  of  their  work 
they  were  necessarily  brought  a  great  deal  into 
contact,  and  Hicksey,  burning  with  an  enthusiasm 
for  his  profession,  was  glad  to  find  someone  be- 
sides James  to  whom  he  could  talk.  In  Nurse 
Desmond  he  found  an  intelligent  listener.  She 
would  listen  silently,  receptive,  and  sympathetic, 
and  he  would  be  tempted  to  pour  out,  in  spite  of 
the  doubt  that  this  might  be  beyond  her  com- 
prehension, an  account  of  his  ideas  regarding  his 
own  special  research. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   113 

In  proportion  as  Nurse  Desmond  pleased  Hick- 
sey  and  received  so  much  of  his  confidence,  she 
failed  to  please  the  two  women.  They  were  con- 
vinced that  she  was  making  what  they  called  "a 
set"  at  the  doctor,  and  it  was  obvious  to  them  that 
he  liked  her  and  found  her  a  good  deal  more  in- 
teresting than  he  had  found  either  of  them.  This 
could  not  be  forgiven.  They  became  very  critical 
and  chose  to  remember  and  enlarge  the  rumours 
that  they  had  heard.  It  was  impossible  for  these 
five  people  to  refrain  from  discussing  each  other. 
Nurse  Hilton  naturally  had  her  confidences  with 
her  young  man,  and  her  consciousness  of  the  mat- 
ron's physical  superiority  made  her  all  the  more 
eager  in  the  little  criticisms  that  human  beings 
love  to  make  at  the  expense  of  their  fellows. 
Nurse  Toms  felt  herself  equally  indignant,  and 
the  two  w^omen  combined  in  resenting  Alice  Des- 
mond's presence  and  priding  themselves  on  some 
remarkable  quality  that  they  both  possessed.  If 
they  had  been  asked  what  the  quality  was  they 
would  have  found  it  difficult  to  answer,  but  since 
neither  of  them  was  concerned  with  introspective 
questions  they  were  content  to  believe  themselves 
superior  and  in  a  position  that  justified  criticism. 

The  effect  of  such  an  attitude  was  to  leave  the 
others  very  much  to  their  own  resources.  To  the 
doctor  this  was  a  matter  of  small  consequence,  but 


114      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

to  Nurse  Desmond  it  was  more  serious.  She  felt 
herself  cut  off  from  the  sympathy  of  the  other 
women,  and  she  found  it  impossible  to  stand  alone. 
She  needed  some  centre  around  which  to  form  her 
life.  Instinctively  she  drew  towards  Hicksey,  but 
found  him,  except  when  he  was  talking  of  his 
work,  formal  and  difficult  to  approach.  She  tried 
to  believe  that  the  importance  of  his  work  was 
sufficient  to  justify  the  loneliness  of  her  existence. 
And  all  the  while  she  was  haunted  and  reproached 
by  the  thought  of  her  past  life;  she  had  made  too 
great  a  sacrifice,  she  had  broken  too  rashly  the 
conventions  of  society  and  followed  too  confidently 
the  promptings  of  her  vigorous  instinct  She  had 
lived  through  her  ordeal  and  had  left  behind  all 
that  she  believed  was  life,  and  from  that  burning 
had  only  carried  away  ashes  that  she  believed  to 
be  dead  and  cold.  Now  on  the  desert  island,  far 
from  the  scenes  of  her  former  life,  there  rose  from 
them  into  the  still  air  of  solitude  a  thin  coil  of 
smoke,  and  once  again  hidden  embers  began  to 
glow,  waiting  only  for  some  breeze  to  fan  them  to 
flame.  No,  she  could  never  go  back  to  the  shelter 
of  society.  People  would  never  allow  her  to  for- 
get. She  was  an  outcast.  These  other  women 
never  let  her  forget  that,  and  now  what  matter 
what  they  thought?  They  would  be  mean  and 
petty  however  she  behaved. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   115 

Her  want  of  comradeship  and  sympathy  was 
the  strongest  of  her  needs,  but  besides  this  there 
was  the  inevitable  sex  antagonism.  Hicksey's 
cold  and  remote  bearing  was  a  challenge,  and  con- 
sciously or  not  it  was  her  task  to  break  down  the 
barrier  that  he  so  rigidly  upheld.  Every  day  they 
met  in  the  hospital;  they  had  their  work  and  in- 
terests in  common  and  found  much  to  talk  over, 
and  three  times  every  day  they  sat  opposite  each 
other  at  their  meals. 

If  Nurse  Desmond  could  not  be  described  as  a 
beautiful  woman,  she  was  most  certainly  a  woman 
of  definite  charm.  Her  dark  abundant  hair  and 
pallid  skin  made  a  striking  contrast  to  her  blue 
eyes,  and  then  her  soft  and .  unexpectedly  low- 
pitched  voice  made  one  stop  and  listen  attentively 
to  catch  what  she  was  saying. 

Hicksey  felt  the  charm  but  was  determined  to 
resist.  It  needed  all  his  resolution.  She  in  no 
way  committed  herself,  but  he  felt  her  presence 
whenever  she  entered  the  room.  His  eyes  would 
involuntarily  follow  the  movements  of  her  bare 
white  arms,  the  folds  of  her  skirt,  and  the  poise  of 
her  body  as  she  moved.  One  evening  he  happened 
to  stay  late  in  his  surgery  looking  over  a  series  of 
slides  that  he  had  just  made,  when  Nurse  Des- 
mond came  in  to  ask  some  question.  He  an- 
swered her  abruptly  ^nd  went  on  with  his  work. 


ii6      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

Instead  of  leaving  the  room,  as  he  expected,  she 
occupied  herself  with  arranging  on  the  shelves 
some  of  the  things  that  were  out  of  place.  He 
was  on  the  point  of  telling  her  not  to  trouble,  when 
he  suddenly  realized  that  the  very  fact  of  his 
speaking  would  in  itself  be  an  admission  that  he 
was  conscious  of  a  strained  relationship;  it  was 
just  this  that  even  to  himself  he  did  not  wish  to 
admit.     He  kept  silent. 

When  the  shelves  were  tidied,  instead  of  leavmg 
the  room  she  took  a  chair  and  sat  down  in  a  far 
corner  occupying  herself  with  the  rolling  of  lint 
bandages.  With  half  a  glance  Hicksey  ascer- 
tained what  she  was  doing ;  he  was  surprised  and 
annoyingly  excited.  He  tried  hard  to  interest 
himself  in  the  slides,  but  could  not-  forget  the 
woman  sitting  behind  him  silent,  and  as  he  be- 
lieved, watchful.  For  half  an  hour  he  worked  on, 
moved  slide  after  slide  under  the  eye-piece, 
mechanically  turning  the  screw  of  the  fine  adjust- 
ment, but  through  his  mind  were  racing  figures  far 
different  from  those  his  eye  looked  at.  What  did 
the  woman  want?  he  asked  himself,  and  left  the 
question  unanswered.  How  he  wished  he  had 
spoken  to  her  when  she  first  began  tidying  the 
shelves — now  it  was  impossible.  He  felt  the  si- 
lence become  active  and  hammer  with  insistence 
at  his  temples  so  that  all  his  thoughts  were  scat- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   117 

tered.  All  that  was  left  was  the  escape  offered  by 
his  work.  He  tried  to  concentrate  on  the  slide  in 
front  of  him.  He  noticed  that  inadvertently  he 
had  screwed  the  objective  down  till  it  had  touched 
and  cracked  the  cover  slip.  Then  a  clear  convic- 
tion swept  all  other  thoughts  far  away.  He  knew 
that  if  he  took  four  steps  across  the  room  towards 
her  she  would  rise  and  stand  in  front  of  him 
white  and  trembling,  that  she  would  stretch  out 
her  hands,  that  he  would  take  them.  He  thought 
of  the  pale  softness  of  her  neck,  of  the  rich  loops 
of  sweet-scented  hair  that  covered  her  ears,  of  her 
white  throat  and  head  thrown  back.  He  looked 
blankly  at  the  shining  disk  of  the  eye-piece,  then 
at  his  fingers  that  he  saw  were  trembling. 
Quickly  he  rose  and  tumbled  the  slides  into  their 
cases,  then,  without  looking  at  her,  strode  across 
the  room  and  out  into  the  fading  twilight. 

The  sand,  pale  violet  and  mauve,  stretched  in 
undulating  waves  on  either  side  and  clung  to  the 
high  banks  of  the  dunes.  Here  and  there  yellow 
flowers  and  grass  looked  surprisingly  bright.  Be- 
yond the  sand-hills  he  saw  the  wet  shining  line  of 
the  beach,  and  beyond  that  the  opaque  deep  blue 
of  the  evening  sea.  He  walked  with  long  strides 
between  the  dunes,  and  then  for  two  miles  kept 
along  the  edge  of  the  waves,  but  still  figures  and 
images  flitted  through  his  brain  and  malicious 


ii8      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

imps  drummed  at  his  temples.  Then  suddenly  he 
checked  and  stood,  a  motionless  white  figure,  upon 
the  grey  sand.  Above  the  noise  of  the  surf  he 
heard  the  scuttle  of  crabs  making  off  in  all  direc- 
tions. Here  before  he  turned  he  must  sift  to  the 
bottom  of  himself.  No,  it  would  not  do,  this  was 
not  the  time  or  place  to  get  mixed  up  with  a 
woman.  He  must  grapple  with  events  and  force 
them  to  his  will — and  yet — in  that  wide-stretching 
immensity  of  the  night  he  cursed  at  the  pitiless  in- 
sistence of  human  passion,  at  the  parched  metallic 
taste  in  his  mouth  and  the  drumming  of  hot  blood 
through  his  brain.  The  waves  lapped  at  his  feet. 
He  stooped  and  let  the  water  run  over  his  hands. 
The  feel  of  it  was  fresh  and  cool.  He  kicked  off 
his  shoes  and,  stripped  of  shirt  and  trousers, 
waded  slowly  into  the  black  water,  which  sparkled 
here  and  there  with  little  plates  of  silver.  When 
waist-deep,  he  plunged  and  swam  out  towards 
the  open  sea.  With  now  and  then  his  chin  under 
the  water  he  watched,  with  a  sense  of  passive  con- 
templation, the  phosphorescent  lining  to  the  ripple 
that  his  strokes  drove  forward.  When  he  had 
swum  out  several  hundred  yards,  he  turned  and 
looked  back  at  the  land  which  stood  out  black 
against  the  blackness  of  the  night  and  was  edged 
with  a  white  line  of  breaking  waves.  He  was 
now  away,  free  from  that  confined  space,  from 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   119 

the  little  human  houses  in  which  he  had  slept  and 
lived,  free  from  the  pettiness  of  human  thoughts. 

He  trod  water  and  watched  the  ripples  stirred  by 
his  hands.  Above  his  head  was  the  emptiness  of 
space,  glittering  with  the  cold  fire  of  infinitely  dis- 
tant worlds;  beneath  him  and  around  were  the 
still  depths  of  the  sea.  Yes,  and  in  his  brain  were 
the  same  depths,  the  same  vast  expanse,  the  infinite 
vision,  the  loving  and  deliberate  search  for  knowl- 
edge, for  the  secret.  Here  he  must  decide,  here 
where  the  free  waters  lapped  and  enveloped  his 
body,  caressing  with  soft  lips,  restoring  confidence 
and  power.  There  was  no  longer  any  need  for 
decision,  the  thing  was  clear.  On  the  one  hand 
there  was  work,  endeavour,  the  probing  of  that 
great  mystery,  perhaps  the  vision — ^life;  on  the 
other  merely  an  instinct,  that  in  its  good  time 
would  be  satisfied.  He  rolled  the  water  aside 
with  a  swift  stroke  of  his  arm.  He  had  a  sudden 
impulse  to  shout  in  this  fresh  won  triumph,  but 
the  mysterious  hush  of  the  night  held  him  dumb. 
With  quick  strokes  he  made  towards  the  shore, 
beating  the  water  into  glowing  eddies.  As  he 
walked  through  the  surf,  the  firm  sand  beneath 
his  feet,  he  felt  washed  clean,  clean  as  earth,  air 
and  water,  perhaps  part  of  them.  A  savage  would 
have  prayed  to  his  God.  He  too  would  pray  to 
his  God;  his  work  was  his  prayer. 


120      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

Half  an  hour  later,  as  he  walked  briskly  past 
the  hospital  to  his  house,  he  noticed  that  the  light 
was  still  burning  in  the  surgery.  He  was  on  his 
way  to  put  it  out,  when  the  thought  struck  him 
that  Nurse  Desmond  might  still  be  there.  Instead 
of  going  to  the  door  he  went  to  the  window  and 
looked  through.  Yes,  she  was  still  there.  She 
was  seated  near  the  table  over  which  her  body  was 
bent  forward.  Her  forehead  was  resting  on  her 
clasped  hands  and  the  light  fell  on  the  brown  un- 
even masses  of  her  hair.  He  stood  watching, 
waiting  for  her  to  move,  but  she  did  not  move. 
Perhaps  she  was  asleep !  and  if  she  were  awake  of 
what  was  she  thinking  ?  Was  she  very  lonely  ?  he 
wondered.  For  half  a  minute  he  watched  her, 
then  turned  and  walked  away  to  his  house.  As 
its  outline  loomed  up  before  him  in  the  darkness 
he  had  a  strange  reluctance  to  approach  and  enter 
the  narrow  doorway.  The  spell  of  the  night  was 
still  on  him,  but  now  mixed  and  inseparably  com- 
mingled with  the  soft  caresses  of  the  water  and 
the  empty  spaces  of  the  sky  was  the  image  of  a 
bowed  head  and  white  clasped  hands. 


CHAPTER  IX 

FOR  a  hot  week  a  north  wind  had  been 
blowing,  blowing  steadily  and  incessantly 
night  and  day.  The  sky  was  cloudless 
and  the  wind  raced  along  the  beach,  driving  before 
it  stinging  gusts  of  sand.  In  places,  it  swept  bare 
the  edges  of  the  dunes,  leaving  behind  an  exposed 
network  of  grass  roots  that  hung  in  brown 
festoons.  The  fine  grains  of  sand  which  were 
beaten  against  the  windows  of  the  hospital  found 
a  way  in  through  chinks  and  crannies  and  were 
whirled  in  eddies  through  the  open  doors.  For 
the  doctor  and  the  nurses  work  was  made  doubly 
difficult;  dust  blew  continually  in  their  eyes,  doors 
slammed  and  banged  and  windows  rattled. 
Then,  suddenly,  there  came  a  calm,  and  the  sun 
once  more  with  unchecked  heat  beat  down  upon 
the  white  sand  and  the  white  roofs  of  the  build- 
ings. The  stillness  came  as  a  relief,  though  it 
strangely  changed  each  man  or  woman  in  the  eyes 
of  the  other.  Instead  of  shouting  to  one  another 
and  fighting  in  and  out  of  doors,  with  wind- 
smacked  faces,  they  spoke   gently   and   rather 

121 


122      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

seldom,  letting  their  words  fall,  with  a  kind  of 
half-conscious  deliberation,  into  the  silence.  To 
each  man  or  woman  the  others  appeared  almost 
like  shadows  moving  quietly  and  mysteriously,  in 
some  medium  different  from  that  of  the  accus- 
tomed round  of  life  and  bustle.  It  was  the  sud- 
den silence  that  produced  in  each  this  curious  and 
vivid  sense  of  his  own  isolation,  an  isolation  not 
terrible  but  tranquil,  contented  for  the  moment  to 
rest  and  to  watch. 

A  smooth  skin  spread  over  the  ocean  that  undu- 
lated gently  to  the  swell;  and  the  lagoon  to  the 
westward  turned  to  a  flat  mirror,  broken  only  by 
the  occasional  plash  of  the  porpoises.  Some- 
times a  flying  fish  sped  close  along  the  surface, 
leaving  a  trail  of  ripples,  and,  as  it  fell  back  into 
the  sea,  set  shivering  in  all  directions  a  series  of 
rings  that  died  away  on  the  even-shining  surface. 
As  the  days  of  calm  followed  one  upon  another, 
the  people  on  the  island  became  more  conscious 
than  ever  before  of  their  isolation.  While  there 
was  a  breeze  and  things  were  stirring,  they  held 
together,  felt  united  by  the  activity  of  the  forces 
without;  but  now  this  calm  and  seemingly  de- 
liberate pause  in  Nature's  progress  troubled  them 
with  vague,  unformed  questions.  It  was  as  if  the 
stillness  that  hung  so  ponderously  over  the  sea  and 
lurked  in  hushed  and  trembling  heat  between  the 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   123 

grass  blades,  had  in  some  unexpected  and  sudden 
way  slid  between  their  personalities  and  had  im- 
prisoned each  in  a  clear  and  crystal  envelope. 
There  was  a  feeling  of  awe,  almost  of  fear,  that 
grew  in  each  human  heart,  as  day  after  day  the 
calm  held  and  nature,  remote  yet  always  terribly 
near,  whispered  secrets  of  her  great  indifference 
and  her  great  power  into  their  unwilling  ears 

Besides  feeling  his  own  isolation  and  the  in- 
stinctive need  for  some  comradeship,  some  under- 
standing, Hicksey  also  felt  for  the  woman,  who 
seemed  even  more  isolated  than  himself.  His 
imagination  had  escaped  control ;  she  was  the  cen- 
tre round  which  it  played.  In  reveries  he  often 
saw  before  him  her  sorrowful  and  thoughtful  face, 
and  then  he  never  could  forget  how  she  had  driven 
him  out  into  the  night.  He  remembered  her  quiet 
dignity  of  the  next  day,  his  own  surprise  and 
wonder  and  his  half-admitted  disappointment  that 
she  should  be  unmoved  and  indifferent. 

The  day  after  the  adventure  of  his  escape  from 
the  surgery  he  had  taken  James  away  on  a  short 
visit  to  Kanna  Island.  He  wished  to  be  free  from 
the  whole  episode,  to  shake  it  off.  They  had  spent 
only  a  few  days  there,  however,  and  then  had  come 
back  in  the  small  half -decked  boat  that  Keynes 
had  sent  him.  Now  that  he  was  once  more  at  the 
hospital,  and  calm  had  fallen  upon  land  and  sea, 


124      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

the  stillness  of  Nature  invited  thoughts  to  flow  and 
imagination  to  play.  He  was  conscious  more 
vividly  now  than  formerly  of  the  comings  and  go- 
ings of  the  silent,  provoking  woman,  at  whose 
thoughts  and  feelings  he  strove  to  guess. 

For  a  time  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  watched  her 
as  if  from  a  remote  distance.  He  had  almost  a 
scientific  interest  in  her  movements,  as  if  he  were 
noticing  in  some  crucial  experiment  the  actions  of 
chemical  elements ;  and  yet,  when  she  approached 
him  with  any  question  about  the  work,  this  quality 
of  interested  spectator  would  draw  back  behind  a 
formal  and  cold  exterior. 

In  that  period  of  calm  each  day  grew  to  be  more 
stifling  than  the  last,  more  stifling  and  more  intol- 
erable. In  place  of  the  breeze  that  usually  played 
over  the  islands,  there  was  a  curious  thinness  in  the 
air  in  which  the  human  beings,  both  natives  and 
whites,  alike  gasped  and  suffered.  In  the  hos- 
pital the  routine  of  work  went  forward,  but  each 
man  and  woman  lived  to  himself,  walking  in  his 
own  small  fraction  of  the  universe  and  drawing 
upon  all  his  forces  to  help  resist  the  oppression 
and  tyranny  of  the  heat. 

It  was  about  four  o'clock  one  afternoon  that 
Hicksey  and  James  first  heard  the  breaking  of 
waves.  They  were  sitting  in  one  of  the  wards 
amongst  the  long  rows  of  beds,  in  which  the  pa- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   125 

tients  lay  gasping  and  turning  from  side  to  side  as 
if  stifled  by  the  close,  hot  atmosphere,  when  the 
silence  was  distinctly  broken  by  the  distinct  plash- 
ing of  the  waves  upon  the  shore.  The  two  men 
looked  at  each  other  in  surprise,  and  remarked 
the  strangeness  of  the  occurrence.  Then,  since 
the  noise  increased,  they  became  so  interested  that 
they  went  out  to  see  what  was  the  cause  of  the  sud- 
den disturbance.  Above  them  the  sky  showed  a 
dull  heavy  grey,  and  the  sun,  a  small  blazing  spot, 
hung  to  the  westward.  On  the  lagoon  a  distinct 
swell  was  visible  that  broke  in  slow,  rhythmical 
waves. 

Hicksey  listened  for  a  few  moments  to  the  dull 
wash  of  the  waters.  ^'I  believe  we  are  going  to 
have  a  hurricane,"  he  said.  *'It's  just  the  time  of 
year  when  they  are  expected.  Wait,  I'll  go  and 
fetch  my  barometer  and  see  what  it  registers."  On 
his  way  to  the  house  he  met  the  women.  They 
also  had  come  out  to  see  what  was  the  cause  of  the 
sudden  breaking  of  the  waves.  On  looking  at  the 
barometer  he  saw  that  it  had  dropped  two  inches. 
In  an  instant  he  took  in  the  significance  of  this 
fact,  and  the  feeling  of  lassitude  that  had  been  on 
him  for  the  last  few  days  was  replaced  by  a  sud- 
den throb  of  excitement.  He  had  heard  of  the 
North-East  Hurricanes  and  knew  that  they  did 
occasionally  extend  30  far  south  as  Fenton  Island, 


126      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

He  wondered  whether  the  building  would  live. 
He  must  tell  the  others  and  make  all  possible  prep- 
arations. He  found  them  gathered  together  on 
the  beach  looking  at  the  ever-increasing  swell. 
They  seemed  already  conscious  of  the  approach  of 
some  paroxysm  of  nature.  When  he  told  them 
of  the  probability  of  a  severe  hurricane,  they 
seemed  all  of  them  almost  glad  at  his  news.  They 
had  all  heard  stories  of  the  fierce  violence  of 
these  great  winds,  but  none  of  them  had  even  come 
near  to  such  an  experience.  Now  that  they  were 
threatened  by  a  common  danger  they  all  instinct- 
ively held  together. 

Hicksey  sent  the  women  off  to  the  hospital  and 
the  houses  with  instructions  to  shut  and  barricade 
all  the  windows,  then,  together  with  James  and 
with  the  help  of  some  of  the  natives,  he  pulled  his 
boat  far  up  on  to  the  sands,  anchored  her  at  bows 
and  stern  and  buried  both  anchors.  On  his  way 
back  he  went  through  the  camp  to  warn  the  natives 
of  the  coming  storm.  He  was  surprised  to  find 
that  they  already  seemed  to  know  that  there  was 
some  disturbance  in  the  air.  They  were  sitting 
crouched  in  little  groups  under  the  sand-dunes  and 
looked  frightened  and  miserable.  All  this  while 
the  swell  was  increasing  and  the  waves  now  fell 
with  a  loud  crash  upon  the  beach.  Any  moment, 
Hicksey  s^id  to  himself,  the  storm  might  break, 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   127 

It  was  not,  however,  till  the  sun  was  sinking  in 
the  south-west  that  they  saw  a  dark  mass  of  clouds 
spring  up  with  surprising  rapidity  on  the  northern 
horizon.  And,  then  in  the  shape  of  a  broad  arrow 
flying  across  the  surface  of  the  sea,  darkening  it 
and  beating  it  to  fury,  the  storm  approached. 

Those  who  were  responsible  for  the  building  of 
the  hospital  had  reckoned  on  the  possibility  of  a 
hurricane  striking  the  islands.  The  hospital  was 
well  built,  with  good  foundations,  and  placed  in  a 
sheltered  position  between  two  huge  sand-hills. 
Hicksey  noted  with  satisfaction  that  the  roof  was 
strongly  clamped  on  to  the  beams  and  uprights, 
and  not,  as  in  so  many  Colonial  houses,  just  held 
in  position  by  virtue  of  its  own  weight.  He  was 
careful  to  see  that  all  the  windows  were  firmly 
fastened,  for  he  had  heard  stories  of  roofs  being 
lifted  clean  off  by  the  fury  of  the  wind  if  once  it 
were  allowed  an  entrance. 

In  the  stillness  of  the  central  ward  they  waited. 
With  excitement  they  watched  each  other's  eager, 
anxious  faces.  They  could  see  from  between  the 
cracks  of  the  shutters  the  smooth  deep  rollers  ad- 
vancing upon  the  island  to  break  in  huge  crashing 
waves  upon  the  beach.  Each  moment  they  seemed 
to  get  larger.  Each  crash  was  distinct  like  the  re- 
port of  a  gun,  and  then  they  would  hear  the  long- 
drawn  screech  of  the  retreating  water.     And  as  yet 


128      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

not  a  breath  stirred.  Then  with  a  rush  the  first 
fury  of  the  wind  was  upon  them;  the  whole  build- 
ing shook  and  the  iron  sides  of  the  house  seemed  to 
scream  in  pain  at  the  air  that  flew  by.  Hicksey 
caught  a  glimpse  of  six  or  seven  native  women, 
who  had  ventured  out  too  late,  caught  up,  blown 
and  tumbled  helter-skelter  over  the  crest  of  a  dune, 
to  fall  in  a  clutching,  tangled  mass  on  the  lee  side. 
Then  clouds  of  sand  hid  everything  from  view. 
Inside  the  room  in  the  dim  light  he  could  see  the 
white,  scared  faces  of  the  women.  In  a  flash  he 
realized  that  everything  depended  upon  himself, 
that  they  would  follow  if  he  gave  a  lead.  To  save 
them  from  panic,  to  keep  them  serviceable  and 
brave,  he  must  keep  them  occupied.  He  told  them 
to  fetch  and  light  lamps  as  the  darkness,  caused 
by  the  clouds  of  sand  that  were  beaten  against  the 
window,  was  almost  complete.  He  himself  with 
James  rushed  to  the  door  which  seemed  at  any 
moment  on  the  point  of  being  blown  in.  They 
nailed  heavy  wooden  struts  across  and  then  treated 
the  other  doors  in  the  same  way,  in  case  the  wind 
should  change  and  blow  from  another  quarter. 
Could  the  building  possibly  stand?  With  that 
immense  force  beating  against  one  end,  must  it  not 
at  any  moment  collapse  and  be  carried,  a  debris  of 
broken  beams  and  twisted  iron,  far  across  the 
island,  over  the  cliffs  and  into  the  sea?    They 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   129 

feared  to  think  of  that  catastrophe,  and  yet  that 
it  did  stand  gave  them  courage,  and  that  they 
could  dare  to  combat  with  their  feeble  activities 
a  force  so  immense  and  terrifying  gave  them  a 
tenacious  hope,  a  hope  that  was  impossible  in  the 
face  of  such  an  adversary,  and  yet  which,  elastic, 
sprang  up  from  under  the  foot  of  despair  and 
drove  them  to  fresh  efforts 

Then  came  the  rain  and  what  was  before  a  rattle 
and  scream  became  an  unbroken  deafening  roar. 
They  shouted  to  one  another,  bending  close  and 
screaming  in  one  another's  faces.  They  watched 
the  lips  and  sometimes  caught  an  articulate  and 
meaning  word.  In  a  few  minutes  the  sand  was 
laid  and  the  rain  streamed  in  horizontal  rods 
against  the  windows  and  flew  by.  Outside  all 
was  a  mad  scurry  of  water  and  wind,  and  inside 
the  house  there  seemed  to  be  a  solid  core  of  sound, 
which  every  now  and  then  was  moulded  and  given 
shape  to  by  a  louder  crash.  It  was  as  if  waves 
were  intermittently  falling  upon  the  roof.  They 
marvelled  that  it  could  ever  stand.  Water  was 
streaming  through  in  fifty  places.  It  was  useless 
to  try  to  check  the  fierce  jets  in  which  it  spluttered 
between  every  crack  in  the  roof  and  walls. 

Two  hours  passed,  and  yet  the  building  held  to- 
gether. The  floors  were  running  with  water,  and 
sand  and  dead  leaves  had  found  their  way  in  and 


130      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

were  plastered  against  walls  and  ceilings.  Every- 
thing was  wet  through ;  the  native  patients  lay  each 
huddled  in  her  bed  under  a  mass  of  saturated 
blankets.  The  members  of  the  white  staff  were 
each  wet  to  the  skin,  and  would  have  been  in  utter 
darkness  had  it  not  been  for  the  lanterns,  for  it 
was  impossible  to  keep  lamps  alight.  And  yet 
each  had  now  a  vague  and  obstinate  hope.  They 
believed  that  they  might  live  through,  hoped  that 
they  had  lived  through  the  worst.  Now  they  no 
longer  felt  fear  or  thought  of  terrible  eventualities. 
They  had  now  become  accustomed  to  the  incessant 
roar  and  bluster  of  the  storm,  and  even  the  crash- 
ing of  the  thunder  and  the  white  sudden  glare  of 
the  lightning  had  ceased  to  make  them  wince. 
They  were  tired,  very  tired,  and  their  senses  were 
dull,  wearied  out  by  the  monotony  of  sound. 
They  hoped  for  life  and  yet  had  ceased  to  fear 
death.  It  was  as  if  a  heavy  and  profound  sleep- 
fulness  had  been  precipitated  from  out  the  fierce 
vortex  of  contesting  sounds.  They  regarded  each 
other,  wet  and  dishevelled.  Nurse  Toms  had 
sunk  into  a  corner  and  had  already  fallen  asleep, 
though  all  about  her  rushed  little  eddies  and  waves 
of  water.  Hicksey  signed  that  they  should  not 
wake  her.  He  shouted  to  the  others  that  they  had 
better  go  and  rest,  if  they  could.  There  was  noth- 
ing more  to  be  done. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   131 

Ever  since  the  storm  had  broken  he  had  moved 
frgm  room  to  room,  doing  all  he  could  to  protect 
things  of  value.  His  scientific  instruments  and 
microscopes  he  had  placed  on  a  table  in  his  surg- 
ery, and  covered  with  a  large  waterproof  sheet. 
It  was  his  business,  so  long  as  the  place  held  to- 
gether, to  save  what  was  possible.  There  was  no 
question  yet  of  taking  any  rest,  but  the  others,  who 
were  cold  and  wearied  out,  might  just  as  well  sleep 
if  they  found  it  possible.  He  left  them  and  went 
into  the  surgery. 

On  the  table  the  lantern  was  still  burning  as  he 
had  left  it  half  an  hour  ago.  Now  that  he  was 
alone  he  felt  a  relief  as  if  pressure  had  been  re- 
moved. His  task,  he  felt,  was  practically 
achieved;  he  had  kept  them  all  up  to  the  mark. 
There  had  been  no  panic,  no  show  of  uncontrolled 
fear.  Now  he  could  safely  leave  them  and  was 
glad  to  be  alone.  Something  within  himself,  that 
he  had  till  now  controlled  with  a  practical  severity, 
some  imaginative  and  romantic  quality  of  his 
youth,  was  now  free  to  roam.  He  was  able  to 
imagine  and  even  see  himself  standing  there  by 
the  table  in  the  feeble  light  of  the  lantern.  He 
saw  his  slight,  wiry  figure,  with  the  wet  clothes 
clinging  close  about  him.  He  pictured  his  face 
and  his  own  features ;  he  knew  that  his  eyes  were 
burning  with  a  newly  kindled  excitement.     Hq 


132      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

was  conscious  of  an  even  poise  between  physical 
exhaustion  and  mental  activity  and  knew  that  his 
senses  and  his  powers  of  thought,  which  were  at 
best  but  tools  of  his  larger  self,  pieces  of  some 
machine,  had  ceased  to  claim  for  themselves  the 
destiny  and  purpose  of  his  life,  and  had  fallen  into 
their  secondary  and  true  places.  His  body,  in- 
stinctive and  all  knowing,  had  now  supreme  com- 
mand. Outside,  the  hurricane  screamed  and 
throbbed.  In  him  was  the  centre,  the  core,  the 
nucleus  of  the  universe.  Then,  as  if  to  challenge 
the  courage  of  his  mood,  the  thunder  burst  and 
crackled  above  his  head  and  the  lightning 
streamed  in  white  rivers  down  the  sky.  Noise 
deafening  and  sudden,  the  world,  the  universe, 
all  that  was  not  himself  was  there,  and  the  night, 
black  and  impenetrable,  white,  blinding,  vanish- 
ing before  his  gaze.  In  himself,  there  was  repose, 
silence — silence  profound,  unutterably  deep.  He 
had  never  before  guessed  at  its  vigorous  and  in- 
toxicating power.  He  stood  poised  on  the  brink 
of  action,  wild  and  reckless.  The  silence  within 
grew  larger  and  larger.  It  was  impossible  to  con- 
tain so  much  life  and  live.  Any  instant  now  he 
might  be  whirled  out  into  the  forces  that  raged 
past. 

He  snatched  himself  out  of  his  trance  with  an 
impulsive  movement  and  half  turned.     Not  two 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   133 

feet  from  him  was  Nurse  Desmond,  her  eyes,  both 
timid  and  daring,  fixed  on  his  face.  How  long 
she  had  stood  beside  him  he  knew  not,  for  in  the 
roar  of  the  tempest  he  had  heard  nothing  of  her 
approach.  His  heart,  already  beating  fiercely  in 
excitement,  leapt  in  his  breast.  Beyond  that  he 
made  no  movement,  but  stood  for  some  seconds 
facing  her.  In  her  eyes  there  was  a  daring  as 
high  as  any  he  could  rise  to.  It  was  a  challenge, 
a  call.  All  the  man  in  him  must  answer  the  hon- 
our of  such  an  assault;  and  yet  his  pity  at  the 
same  instant  saw,  peeping  from  behind  the  mask 
of  her  courage,  knowledge  of  terrors,  occult  and 
impenetrable,  warders  of  the  soul  on  its  lonely 
pilgrimage.  Pity  and  admiration  mingled  to  a 
passionate  and  impulsive  adoration.  Here  con- 
centrated into  a  human  form  was  all  the  mystery 
of  the  elements,  the  elements  that  raged  past  them, 
breaking  all  obstructions,  gone  mad  in  their  free- 
dom. Behind  her  eyes  he  saw  life  surging  and 
beckoning;  at  one  glance  in  full  flood,  and  at  the 
next  more  painfully,  extravagantly  alluring  in  its 
ebb,  that  left  her  body  like  a  beautiful  casket 
crying  to  be  filled  with  his  supreme  vitality. 

With  an  action  direct  in  its  simplicity  she  raised 
her  hands  to  her  face,  then  impulsively  laid  them 
upon  his  shoulders  and  drew  him  forward. 
Thought  of  his  work  and  of  his  resolution  no 


134      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

longer  existed;  here  was  a  grip  greater  than  that 
of  any  individual  will.  His  arms  were  round  her 
and  he  covered  her  face  and  neck  with  passionate 
kisses.  She  clung  to  him,  half  sobbing  in  her  tri- 
umph. In  the  flickering  and  dim  light  of  the  lan- 
tern her  upturned  face  looked  like  the  white  flower 
of  some  clinging  plant,  a  plant  that  loves  and 
clings,  some  parasite  that  flourishes  with  supreme 
arrogance  upon  the  forces  that  it  drains.  Held  in 
each  other's  arms  the  silence  was  for  them  pro- 
found and  mysterious.  Together  they  formed  the 
nucleus,  the  centre  round  which  the  universe  spun 
in  a  wild  flurry  of  elements.  Out  in  the  night  the 
hurricane  raged  in  unabated  fury. 


CHAPTER  X 

ON  the  morning  after  the  storm,  as  Hick- 
sey  walked  through  the  debris  of  the 
wrecked  wards  he  felt  a  newly-born 
lightness  and  exultation.  The  sharp  strain  of  the 
preceding  days  had  suddenly  snapt  and  given 
place  to  unexpected  relief.  He  now  realized  how 
severe  that  strain  had  been  and  felt  that  by  the 
removal  of  a  weight,  which  in  retrospect  seemed 
intolerable  and  absurd,  he  had  been  set  free  for 
new  and  better  work.  He  was  willing  and  glad 
to  admit  that  Alice  Desmond  had  won  over  him 
a  great  and  lasting  victory.  He  rejoiced  that  the 
struggle  was  over  and  reproached  himself  with 
folly  for  having  held  out  so  long.  As  for  what  the 
others  might  think,  that  could  hardly  concern  him ; 
he  was  strong  enough  to  maintain  his  own  posi- 
tion and  ignore  their  petty  criticisms.  These 
criticisms,  however,  did  not  come  as  quickly  as  he 
had  expected,  and  for  the  next  few  days  all  hands 
were  claimed  by  the  common  cause  for  repairing 
the  damage  done  by  the  storm. 

The  weeks  that  followed  were  the  happiest  that 
135 


136      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

Hicksey  had  yet  spent  on  the  island.  Nurse  Des- 
mond appeared  to  take  a  real  and  intelligent  in- 
terest in  his  work,  and  he  was  glad  to  talk  over 
his  hopes  and  the  general  scheme  of  his  work,  and 
was  pleased  to  find  some  one  so  sympathetic  to 
his  ideas.  For  these  weeks  he  worked  hard  and 
better  than  he  had  ever  worked  before.  He  often 
during  this  time  found  occasion  to  reproach  him- 
self for  having  been  so  foolish  as  ever  to  have 
imagined  that  there  was  not  room  enough  in  life 
both  for  ambition  and  love.  Here  among  the 
primitive  conditions  of  an  unvalued  and  wild 
island  he  would  prove  that  there  was  ample  scope 
for  both. 

After  the  damage  done  by  the  hurricane  had 
been  repaired,  the  people  at  the  hospital  settled 
down  to  regular  work.  All  day  the  doctor  worked 
either  in  his  private  room  or  in  the  wards,  and 
in  the  evening  at  sunset  he  would  walk  with  Nurse 
Desmond  along  the  yellow  sandy  beaches  or  over 
the  rough  cliffs  of  the  island. 

The  problem  that  solved  itself  so  easily  for  the 
man  was  not,  however,  so  easy  for  the  woman. 
The  fact  that  she  loved  and  had  won  him  was  in 
itself  the  chief  significance  of  her  life.  She  took, 
it  is  true,  a  keen  interest  in  his  work,  but  this  was 
because  all  his  activities  had  for  so  many  years 
been  closely  interwoven  with  it.     His  work  was 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   137 

perhaps  his  chief  attribute,  but  she  did  not  love 
the  work,  she  loved  the  man.  Before  long  she  saw 
it  as  a  successful  rival  to  herself  and  her  own 
powers,  and  with  growing  resentment  she  was 
angry  that  it  should  take  up  so  much  of  his  time. 
She  still  questioned  and  talked  to  him  about  the 
research  upon  which  he  was  engaged,  but  with 
growing  envy  and  jealousy,  and  she  watched 
closely,  trying  to  determine  how  much  of  his  life 
she  could  consider  hers  and  how  much  escaped  her 
and  found  expression  in  his  work.  She  wanted 
every  bit  of  him,  and  hated  to  think  that  he  could 
escape  into  a  land  where  she  could  not  follow  and 
was  not  needed. 

It  was  now  that  Alice  Desmond  began  to  feel 
the  narrow  limits  of  the  island.  There  was  no  life 
possible  for  her  save  that  which  she  found  in  the 
doctor's  company.  The  habits  and  surroundings 
of  ordinary  civilized  life  could  here  give  no  di- 
version. There  was  nothing  but  the  two  or  three 
iron  houses  of  the  settlement,  the  hospital  full  of 
black  patients,  the  arid,  far-stretching  sand-dunes 
and  the  blazing  sun  overhead.  The  other  nurses 
were  distant  and  discreet  in  all  that  they  said,  and 
watched  her  with  envy  and  a  malignant  vigilance. 
With  them  she  could  hope  for  no  sort  of  friend- 
ship. The  rigid  and  hard  rules  that  they  had 
laid  down  for  themselves  they  would  not  allow  an- 


138      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

other  woman  to  break  without  exacting  the  utmost 
penahy. 

As  the  weeks  passed  a  tedious  monotony  settled 
once  more  upon  the  hospital.  The  daily  occupa- 
tions became  stale  and  wearisome.  Even  Hicksey 
was  touched  by  a  feeling  of  lassitude.  He  found 
it  more  difficult  to  work  and  felt  that  his  interest 
was  failing.  The  early  enthusiasm  for  his  work 
faded,  and  Nurse  Desmond  came  to  occupy  more 
and  more  of  his  thoughts.  Half  consciously  he 
knew  that  she  claimed  him,  tried  to  possess  him 
altogether.  For  a  time  he  drifted,  letting  his  work 
fall  into  the  background.  He  gave  less  time  to 
his  research  and  lost  altogether  his  former  keen- 
ness and  youthful  delight  in  overcoming  obstacles. 
He  worked  now  with  the  dogged  insistence  born 
of  the  necessity  of  accomplishing  a  set  task. 

One  day  alone  in  his  laboratory  he  realized  with 
unflinching  certainty  how  greatly  his  standard  had 
fallen,  and  how  far  superior  the  work  that  he  was 
doing  two  months  or  a  year  ago  was  to  that  which 
he  was  now  producing.  He  experienced  bitter 
self-contempt  and  humiliation.  He  hated  him- 
self and  felt  a  newly  born  resentment  towards 
Alice  Desmond.  He  paced  up  and  down  his 
room,  thinking  hard,  anxious  as  always  to  think 
clearly  and  know  where  he  was.  No,  he  could  not 
give  her  up;  but  rather  than  do  bad  work  he  would 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   139 

for  the  time  give  up  research.  He  would  take  life 
on  the  note  that  seemed  most  definite,  take  the 
woman  and  all  that  she  could  give,  let  his  passion 
run  without  check  or  curb.  He  would  exhaust 
her  charm,  her  sex,  her  mystery,  and  then,  the 
wiser  and  the  stronger,  live  once  again  his  own 
life.  And  yet,  as  the  days  passed  and  the  un- 
broken monotony  of  the  island  pressed  upon  him, 
he  found  that  he  was  becoming  always  more  and 
more  unhappy  and  less  at  ease  with  his  own  con- 
science. Yet  he  was  no  weakling  to  be  harassed 
by  regrets;  he  had  no  shame  for  his  passion,  no 
evil  conscience  towards  nature,  no  shame  even  over 
the  thoughts  of  past  experiences.  It  was  what  he 
had  left  undone  that  troubled  him,  his  w^ork  and 
the  possibilities  that  he  was  letting  slide.  Could 
he  ever  recover  himself,  ever  again  give  body  and 
mind  to  that  unrewarded,  passionate  search  for 
knowledge,  the  unveiling  of  what  was  veiled? 
Every  day  the  thought  smouldered ;  but  there  stood 
between  him  and  his  work  the  presence  of  a 
woman's  body,  her  white  face  and  soft  hands,  the 
remembrance  of  all  his  desire  and  of  all  her  love. 
And  then,  besides  the  difficulties  of  his  own  strug- 
gle, there  was  the  presence  to  be  reckoned  with  of 
the  other  people  on  the  island.  They  somehow 
created  a  feeling  of  dense  obscurity.  To  them 
also,  at  the  time  of  the  storm,  had  come  a  glimpse 


HO   WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED 

of  an  intenser  life ;  but,  so  soon  as  all  danger  was 
past,  each  felt  around  for  the  accustomed  grooves, 
and  being  children  of  habit  they  instinctively 
sought  for  those  conditions  which  in  previous 
times  of  security  had  made  for  their  survival. 
For  a  short  period  fear  had  pulled  them  together, 
and  they  had  met  with  serious  and  unmasked  faces 
the  prospect  of  death,  but  now  they  were  ashamed 
of  that  nakedness,  and  were  anxious  lightly  to 
assume  a  disguise  which  would  serve  the  double 
purpose  of  hiding  their  personalities  and  of  con- 
verting to  the  trivial  the  poignant  possibilities  of 
existence.  It  was  not  long  before  the  conven- 
tional and  orthodox  view  of  the  situation  assumed 
large  proportions,  the  more  so  perhaps  as  they  had 
little  outside  their  own  work  to  think  about.  They 
forgot  that  in  the  time  of  danger  they  had  re- 
spected the  doctor  as  by  natural  right  their  leader, 
and  soon  afterwards  they  began  to  condemn  his 
actions. 

Hicksey  and  Nurse  Desmond  made  little  or  no 
effort  to  conceal  their  passion.  The  doctor  was 
not  troubled  by  what  might  be  said  of  him.  If  his 
actions  could  pass  his  own  criticism,  he  had  little 
fear  of  what  others  might  say.  For  Alice  Des- 
mond things  were  not  so  easy;  not  that  she  was 
much  troubled  by  her  conscience,  but  she  was 
wrought  almost  to  desperation  by  her  resentment 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   141 

of  criticism  either  spoken  or  implied.  While 
Hicksey  was  with  her  their  life  in  common  ex- 
cluded nearly  all  else.  The  other  women  stood 
in  awe  of  him  and  were  careful  what  they  said. 
They  were  careful  always  what  they  said,  and  just 
by  this  and  by  silences  and  glances  they  let  her 
know  how  much  they  held  themselves  superior. 
When  she  was  alone  she  learnt  to  fear  them  as  she 
feared  the  world  that  they  reflected.  She  tried 
hard  to  hold  herself  above  her  fear  and  above  her 
resentment,  but  she  sank  always  beneath  them. 
And  then  a  secret  and  a  greater  fear  lurked  in  her, 
that  they  might  see  that  she  held  him  only  on  an 
uncertain  thread,  that  she  lacked  confidence  in  her 
power,  and  that  her  life  was  staked  upon  the 
struggle  to  captivate  and  to  hold.  Even  while  she 
delighted  in  his  surrender  and  in  the  caresses  he 
gave,  her  thought  and  her  one  desire  was,  how 
could  ^she  hold  him  for  always,  make  him  her 
slave  and  her  master.  She  must  have  him  undi- 
vided, be  to  him  all-sufficient. 

Lacking  the  imagination  to  worship  where  he 
had  worshipped,  she  wished  all  worship  to  cease 
save  at  the  shrine  of  her  own  sex.  And  always  she 
doubted  him,  divined  a  restless  conscience,  an  en- 
emy that  she  could  never  come  at,  that  she  feared 
must  always  escape.  Now  for  some  months  their 
relation  had  been  developing.     It  had  changed 


142      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

and  taken  on  unexpected  aspects.  From  the  first 
onrush  of  passion  it  had  grown  to  that  familiar 
sense  of  possession  and  dependence  one  upon  the 
other.  And  yet  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  be 
at  rest.  The  power  of  sex  could  not  be  all-suffi- 
cient. If  there  was  in  their  relation  little  beyond 
the  attraction  of  man  for  woman,  there  was  at 
least  this  between  them  that  they  stood  together  to 
bear  the  criticism  of  the  others.  It  was  during 
this  time  that  Hicksey  felt  most  strongly  the 
weight  of  all  the  previous  quarrel  with  Dr.  Hub- 
bard. The  ill-feelings  that  he  had  then  disturbed 
were  now  reawakened  in  the  two  nurses,  and  he 
knew  that  they  now  hated  him  quite  passionately, 
and  that  he  and  Alice  Desmond  stood  isolated, 
surrounded  by  feelings  of  disapproval.  This  dis- 
approval had  sprung  largely  from  sexual  jealousy, 
and  it  had  grown  to  be  an  overwhelming  passion 
that  enveloped  even  his  smallest  actions  and  clung 
poisonously  about  the  woman  who  had  staked 
everything  upon  winning  him. 

For  a  long  time  he  had  tried  to  dominate  the 
situation,  to  carry  everything  forward  as  if  noth- 
ing exceptional  were  in  the  air.  He  had  partly 
succeeded,  but  there  had  come  feelings  of  ex- 
asperation and  self-contempt.  It  was  humiliating 
to  know  himself  the  centre  round  which  so  many 
mean  and  petty  motives  played.     At  such  times 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   143 

he  ceased  to  be  able  to  get  a  fair  view  of  himself, 
and  only  knew  that  his  work  was  heavy  and  labor- 
ious but  somehow  a  relief,  and  that  when  his  work 
was  done  he  met  Alice  Desmond  with  pleasure, 
feeling  that  her  presence  deadened  and  made 
tolerable  the  ever-growing  feeling  of  self-con- 
tempt. 

Every  day  he  worked  in  the  hospital,  and  exe- 
cuted what  had  to  be  done  with  a  dogged  care  and 
thoroughness,  and  every  evening  he  would  find 
Nurse  Desmond  waiting  for  him  on  the  sand-hills 
by  the  path  that  led  to  his  house.  He  had  ar- 
ranged that  they  should  see  little  of  each  other 
during  the  daytime,  and  that  they  should  work  in 
different  wards.  He  did  not  even  know  what  time 
she  finished  her  work,  but  every  evening  he  found 
her  waiting,  and  he  looked  forward  eagerly  to 
those  meetings  when  he  could  forget  everything  in 
the  pleasure  of  her  presence. 

The  day's  work  over,  he  walked  over  the  sand- 
dunes  towards  the  house.  In  the  distance  he 
could  see  her  white  and  blue  dress,  a  bright  mark 
against  the  yellow  sands  and  grey  bushes.  Her 
general  poise,  the  lines  of  her  figure  and  even  the 
movements  of  her  garments  were  now  familiar  and 
reminiscent.  He  knew  them  all  by  heart.  As 
she  drew  near  he  felt  a  warmth  of  pleasure  and  a 
welcome  relaxation  from  his  mood  of  discontent. 


144      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Whatever  he  might  have  lost  on  this  remote  out- 
post of  civilization,  he  had  gained  possession  and 
won  dominion  over  this  alluring  woman  who 
charmed  him,  as  a  dangerous  and  beautiful  toy 
might  charm  some  happy  child.  In  her  presence 
he  could  still  forget  himself  and  hide  his  uneasy 
conscience. 

He  greeted  her  with  an  outstretched  hand.  "I 
am  late  to-day." 

*'Not  so  late,  but  IVe  known  you  later.  I  would 
rather  wait  out  here  than  in  the  house  where  the 
others  are  always  watching  everything  I  do. 
They  never  seem  to  be  satisfied.  Even  now  they 
are  watching  to  see  if  you  meet  me." 

"Let  them  watch  and  be  damned.  Shall  we 
strike  across  the  island  and  keep  along  the  high 
cliffs  on  the  east  side?  We  don't  often  go  that 
way."  Then,  after  a  pause :  "You  mustn't  mind 
what  they  say  or  think ;  my  position  is  too  strong 
for  anything  I  do  to  matter.  The  authorities 
don't  find  it  so  easy  to  get  good  men  to  work  in  an 
out-of-the-way  place  like  this." 

They  walked  single  file  along  a  narrow  path 
that  led  between  the  bushes  to  higher  ground. 
He  led  and  she  followed ;  every  now  and  then  he 
turned  to  look  at  her.  The  wind  was  in  her  hair 
and  in  her  garments.  She  smiled  at  him  happily 
and  proudly.     In  a  little  more  than  a  mile  they 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   145 

feached  the  cliffs  to  the  eastward.  Here  there 
was  open  grass-land,  and  they  sat  for  a  while 
looking  at  the  rugged  coast-line  and  the  waves  that 
beat  against  it  far  below.  In  such  a  place,  far 
away  by  ^themselves,  they  could  find  opportunity 
to  forget  the  others  and  the  petty  life  of  the  island ; 
here,  with  the  soft  wind  blowing  by,  the  grass  and 
small  flowers  under  their  feet  and  the  ocean,  blue 
and  iridescent,  spread  wide  and  far  to  meet  the 
sky  on  the  distant  arc  of  the  horizon,  here  they 
could  forget  everything  but  one  another  and  live 
in  the  contentment  of  the  moment.  At  such  times 
he  felt  real  pride  in  her  possession,  and  admitted 
that  she  counted  as  part  of  his  life  in  a  way  no 
other  woman  had  ever  counted.  Yes,  she  had 
made  a  great  difference  and  had  now  a  real  hold 
on  him,  and  oh  yes,  she  was  worth  it  all.  And  yet 
there  was  stirring  somewhere  deep,  an  uneasy 
conscience  that  told  him  that  he  had  sacrificed 
too  much — what  he  had  done  against  himself 
could  not  be  forgiven.  When  she  was  close  to 
him,  this  conscience  shrank  to  its  smallest  and 
everything  would  be  forgotten  and  lost  in  the 
great  spaces  of  her  tempting  and  evasive  charm. 
There  was  something  in  her  love  surprisingly  per- 
sonal that  touched  the  very  quick  of  his  life,  and 
then  there  were  times  when  he  drew  back  from 
her  contact,  frightened  at  some  glimpse  of  her 


146      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

aloofness,  an  aloofness  and  indifference  as  of  na- 
ture herself.  Not  that  he  ever  thought  that  she 
did  not  love  him ;  he  knew  that  she  loved  him  all 
too  passionately;  but  he  saw  at  times  gaping  and 
alluring,  yet  black  and  repulsive,  abysses  into 
which  he  might  be  drawn.  And  while  he  stag- 
gered on  the  brink,  some  half-disclosed  genius  of 
her  sex  stood  aside,  mechanical  and  automatous, 
indifferent  to  his  fate. 

For  some  time  they  stayed  talking  together  on 
the  cliff,  then  he  suggested  that  he  would  clamber 
down  and  have  a  bathe. 

"Promise  not  to  go  beyond  the  coral  pools,"  she 
said;  ''it's  very  dangerous  out  in  the  breakers." 

"All  right,  I  promise;  but  it's  really  quite 
safe." 

He  left  her  and  for  a  time  disappeared  behind 
an  outstanding  piece  of  rock,  then  again  she  saw 
him  far  below,  a  brown  figure  against  the  deep 
blue  of  the  pools. 

When  he  had  bathed  and  was  once  more 
dressed,  he  began  to  climb  the  cliff.  Near  the  top 
he  came  on  a  grassy  plateau.  He  called  to  her  to 
come  and  join  him  there. 

"No,  come  up  here,"  she  answered;  "I  can't  get 
down,  it's  too  steep." 

"Oh  yes,  you  can.  I'm  sure  you  can  if  you  try. 
I  want  to  talk  to  you." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   147 

She  clambered  towards  him.  He  went  halfway 
up  to  give  her  a  hand.  "I've  never  clambered 
about  like  this  before,"  she  complained.  "Well, 
what  is  it?" 

"What  I  have  to  tell  you  is  that  I'm  going  away 
the  day  after  to-morrow.     I've  simply   got  to 

go." 

She  was  all  anxiety  in  a  moment.  "What? 
Where  are  you  going  to?'^ 

"I  am  only  going  to  Kanna  Island;  I  haven't 
been  there  for  ten  days." 

"Must  you  go  there  again  so  soon?  You  seem 
to  be  always  rushing  to  and  fro.  I  thought  at  first 
.when  you  said  you  were  going  that  you  meant  you 
were  going  to  the  mainland.  Tell  me,  you  don't 
w^ant  to  leave  me,  do  you?" 

"No,  of  course  I  don't,  but  I  have  to  go  over 
there  if  it's  only  to  keep  that  man  Sherwin  in  his 
place.  He's  been  getting  very  sulky  lately,  very 
conceited  and  uppish;  I  wouldn't  be  surprised  to 
find  that  he  had  taken  to  drink.  The  absolutely 
solitary  life  he  leads  is  not  good  for  any  one,  but 
the  funny  thing  is  he  seems  to  like  it.  It's  curious 
how  loneliness  grows  on  a  man.  I  don't  believe 
if  he  had  the  chance  he'd  go  back  to  civilization." 

"And  do  you  want  to  go  back?"  she  asked. 

"I  don't  want  to  go  now,  but  some  day  I  shall  I 
suppose."    A  long  minute  passed  and  neither  of 


148      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

them  spoke,  but  they  sat  side  by  side  in  silence 
looking  out  over  the  deep  blue  of  the  restless  sea. 
^'I  wonder  if  I  could  go  back,"  he  mused.  *' Could 
you?" 

She  put  her  arms  round  him.  "No,  dear,  1 
don't  want  to  go  and  I  don't  want  you  to  go." 
For  a  while  they  sat  clasped  in  the  fading  light. 
Then  suddenly  he  shook  himself  free. 

"There's  no  need  to  be  so  serious,"  he  laughed. 
"There's  no  question  of  my  going  yet.  It's  best 
to  take  short  views  of  life.  But  if  I'm  to  keep 
my  job  I  must  work  thoroughly  and  give  these 
others  no  chance  of  finding  fault  and  saying  that 
I'm  no  better  than  Hubbard." 

"Yes,  I  suppose  you  must  go,"  she  admitted, 
"but  you  don't  realize  how  I  suffer  while  you  are 
away.  The  others  make  things  too  intolerable. 
I  don't  know  where  to  be  or  where  to  look,  but 
keep  shut  up  in  my  room  and  pray  that  no  harm 
may  come  to  you.  Will  you  promise,  promise  me 
that  you  will  not  take  such  awful  risks  as  you  did 
last  time  you  were  away.  Remember  that  I  would 
rather  be  without  you  for  a  few  days  than  that 
you  should  take  such  risks." 

"You  forget,"  he  laughed,  "that  I  wanted  to  get 
back  to  you :  I  might  have  had  to  wait  for  another 
week  for  the  wind  to  change." 

"But  it  was  frightfully  dangerous."     Then  she 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   149 

laughed  at  the  reminiscence.  "I  shall  never  for- 
get how  poor  James  looked  when  he  came  in  all 
dripping;  did  you  really  throw  him  overboard?" 

*'Not  exactly  that,"  he  said.  "You  see  it  was 
like  this.  When  I  got  into  the  harbour  I  saw  that 
it  was  too  rough  to  bring  the  boat  up  to  the  rocks 
as  I  usually  do.  She  simply  would  have  been 
battered  to  pieces,  so  the  only  thing  to  do  was  to 
leave  her  at  the  moorings,  and  the  only  way  to  get 
ashore  then  was  to  swim.  Well,  I  asked  James  if 
he  could  swim.  He  said  no.  He's  a  silly  fel- 
low after  all  the  chances  he  has  had.  Then  I  told 
him  I  was  going  to  swim  ashore,  as  I  didn't  fancy 
staying  the  night  on  board  wet  through  as  I  was. 
He  begged  me  not  to  leave  him ;  and  finally  con- 
sented to  let  me  tow  him  to  land.  It  was  nothing 
much  of  a  business,  only  a  quarter  of  a  mile  or 
so." 

She  laughed  again  at  the  recollection.  "Poor 
man,  he  looked  very  frightened  and,  when  he  told 
me  that  you  had  swum  back  to  fetch  your  instru- 
ments, he  didn't  get  much  sympathy  from  me. 
That  was  wicked  of  you.  You  never  thought 
about  me  then,  or  what  would  become  of  me  if 
you  were  drowned."  She  spoke  reprovingly.  "I 
don't  believe  you'd  have  swum  back  to  fetch  me ! " 

"I'd  have  towed  you  ashore  just  as  I  towed 
James." 


150      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

A  cool  wind  blew  past  them.  She  leaned  to- 
wards him,  seemed  to  hesitate,  then,  speaking 
quickly:     ''Couldn't  I  come  with  you?" 

He  answered  impulsively:  *'No,  I  don't  think 
so";  and  then,  after  a  short  silence,  *'And  yet  I 
don't  see  why  you  shouldn't — that  is,  if  you'd 
really  like  to  come.  My  position  is  strong  enough 
to  do  what  I  like.  So  long  as  I  do  my  w^ork  as 
thoroughly  as  I  do,  they  will  never  sack  me." 
Then  as  if  half-delighted  with  the  idea: 
''There's  no  doubt  the  others  will  be  furious.  It 
will  give  them  something  to  make  a  song  about," 
and  he  laughed.  He  was  pleased  at  the  excite- 
ment that  the  idea  stirred  in  him.  "Yes,  come  if 
you  like,  I'd  like  you  to  come.  There's  plenty 
of  work  to  be  done." 

Now  that  he  had  raised  no  objections,  she  was  a 
little  frightened  at  the  boldness  of  her  request;  a 
little  disappointed  too  at  his  rising  to  the  adven- 
ture rather  than  to  the  idea  of  her  being  with  him. 
He  went  on,  full  of  his  own  thoughts.  "If  you 
come  I  shall  be  away  ten  days  at  least.  There  is 
plenty  of  work  in  which  you  can  help.  And  here 
things  are  going  so  smoothly  that  I  can  leave  them 
to  James.  He's  a  capable  enough  fellow,  and  a 
nice  fellow  too,  if  he  wasn't  got  at  so  easily  by 
those  two  women.  My  word,  won't  they  be 
angry!" 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   151 

Alice  Desmond  was  frightened  at  the  so  easy 
granting  of  her  request.  She  hated  to  stay,  and 
yet  she  was  afraid  to  go.  She  felt  that  then  she 
would  be  so  doubly  committed  and  so  much  at  his 
mercy.  She  wished  that  he  could  see  the  sacrifice 
that  she  was  making  and  longed  too  for  some  as- 
surance that  his  love  would  last.  She  stood  up 
and  looked  at  him  for  some  moments  in  silence. 
Then  she  bent  over  him  and  looked  seriously  into 
his  eyes. 

"Can  you  promise  me  that  you  love  me?  That 
you  really  do  love  me;  that  you  will  never  leave 
me?  Remember,  I  am  willing  to  make  every  sac- 
rifice for  you." 

He  met  her  eyes  for  a  moment,  then  let  them 
fall  and  rest  on  the  far  horizon.  His  answer  was 
almost  a  complaint.  "I  have  made  every  sacrifice 
for  yc>M."  The  thought  flashed  through  his 
brain:  "How  can  I  know  that  I  shall  not  hate 
her  in  a  month's  time?"  But  he  added,  "Of 
course  I  love  you.  Only  come  with  me  and  I 
will  show  you  how  much." 


CHAPTER  XI 

WHEN,  three  months  earlier,  the  two 
doctors  sailed  away  towards  Fenton 
Island,  Sherwin  had  been  glad  of 
their  departure.  As  he  stood  upon  the  crest  of 
the  high  sand-hill  and  watched  the  sail  of  the 
*' Shark"  disappear  into  the  distance,  he  was  glad 
to  feel  once  more  undisputed  power  over  the 
island.  The  doctors  had  neither  of  them,  of  late, 
given  him  much  society,  and  now  that  they  were 
gone  he  found  nothing  to  regret.  They  had  stirred 
his  anger  and  contempt  at  their  professional  jeal- 
ousies and  personal  indifference  to  his  sufferings, 
and,  although  he  was  grateful  enough  to  Hicksey 
for  saving  his  hand,  he  felt  sore  and  injured  that 
his  overtures  of  friendship  had  been  so  coldly  re- 
ceived. 

He  stood  on  the  hill-top  till  he  saw  the  last 
flicker  of  white  disappear  into  the  distant  blue. 
Then  as  he  walked  slowly  towards  his  own  house, 
he  felt  rise  within  him,  once  more,  his  own  im- 
portance as  undisputed  ruler  of  the  island.  When 
he  reached  his  house  he  pulled  his  cane  chair  out 

on  to  the  verandah,  took  out  his  pipe,  loaded  and 

152 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   153 

lit  it,  then  sat  in  silence  enjoying  the  sense  of 
isolation.  He  listened  to  the  distant  plashing  of 
the  waves  and  the  monotonous  murmur  of  insects' 
wings  with  a  quiet  enjoyment. 

Now  that  his  hand  was  almost  healed  he  couid 
look  back  with  a  sense  of  happy  escape  upon  the 
time  of  his  suffering,  upon  all  those  days  of  loneli- 
ness when  hope  and  despair  struggled  together 
and  he  had  seen  the  terrors  of  existence  peeping 
from  behind  their  veils.  Yet  he  still  remembered 
with  pride  that  even  in  those  days  of  distress  and 
humiliation  he  had  kept  his  power  over  the  others. 
Now  that  he  was  once  more  master  of  himself,  he 
could  put  that  power  to  some  purpose  and  teach 
his  gang  of  workers  to  fear  him  as  Coffee  feared 
him.  Already  he  had  shown  them  that  he  was  to 
be  feared,  and  they  had  not  forgotten  how  one 
hot  day  when  he  was  in  a  bullying  and  hectoring 
mood,  and  one  of  them  had  made  for  him,  with 
one  hand  only  he  had  laid  the  fellow  out,  and 
then  had  not  omitted,  as  he  himself  expressed  it, 
"to  put  his  feet  into  him."  Oh,  yes,  he  knew 
how  to  treat  niggers !  He  moved  nervously  at  the 
recollection,  and  was  no  longer  conscious  of  the 
quiet  sounds  of  the  islands. 

Yes,  he  was  glad  the  two  doctors  had  gone;  then 
he  thought  with  a  pang  of  envy  that  they  had  gone 
back  to  their  women.     At  that  moment  he  ques- 


154      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

tioned  with  petulant  annoyance  why  he  should  be 
left  alone  on  a  desert  island  with  a  lot  of  pagan 
black  men.  He  got  up  and  paced  to  and  fro  on 
the  verandah.  His  earlier  mood  of  quiet  satisfac- 
tion was  replaced  by  a  sense  of  the  discords  that 
he  contained.  He  could  not  tear  himself  away 
from  the  life  on  the  island ;  he  had  come  to  under- 
stand it  too  well ;  it  had  already  claimed  too  much 
of  him,  and  yet  he  chafed  at  the  unnatural  condi- 
tion of  his  life.  Damn  those  doctors,  they  were 
clever  enough  to  keep  their  women  shut  up  on  the 
other  island. 

He  shouted  to  Coffee  who  was  rattling  pans  in 
an  out-house  that  served  as  a  kitchen. 

The  black  came  and  stood  before  him. 

*'Sit  down.  Coffee,  I  want  to  talk  to  you." 
Sherwin  flung  himself  into  his  own  chair.  Coffee 
squatted  down  upon  his  heels  and  for  some  mo- 
ments the  white  man  regarded  him  in  silence. 

^'How  long  have  you  been  on  this  island,  Cof- 
fee?" 

"Long  time.  Master,  not  quite  sure  how  long." 

"What  for  you  come  here?" 

"I  come  along  o'  boat,  by  and  by  I  go  back 
along  o'  boat." 

Sherwin  grunted,  then  he  asked:  "Are  you 
married  man.  Coffee?  Have  you  got  woman  in 
your  country?" 


WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED       155 
*'Yes,  master.     I  got  um  woman  and  two  picki- 


ninny." 


"What  time  you  go  back  and  see  your  woman?" 

Coffee  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  made  no  re- 
ply. 

"What  for  you  leave  your  woman  and  picki- 
ninny?" 

Again  he  shrugged  and  made  no  answer.  Sher- 
win  shouted  at  him.  "Don't  sit  there  grinning. 
Answer  me,  do  you  hear?" 

"I  not  know,  master,  I  come  along  o'  boat." 

"Yes,  I  know  you  came  in  a  boat;  that's  not  an- 
swering my  question." 

Coffee,  not  understanding  this  last  remark, 
grinned  nervously. 

"Doesn't  know  when  he  came,  doesn't  know 
when  he's  going.  Poor  devil  doesn't  know  where 
he  is  even."  Then  Sherwin  laughed  brutally. 
"Do  you  think  all  boats  go  to  your  bloody  little 
islands?" 

Again  not  understanding,  the  black  continued 
to  grin. 

Sherwin  bent  forward  and  spoke  deliberately 
at  him.  "I  think  um.  Coffee,  other  fellow  get 
your  woman  by  this  time." 

"No,  master." 

For  some  moments  both  men  were  silent.  Sher- 
win, feeling  that  it  was  impossible  to  make  the 


156      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

savage  feel  the  true  and  terrible  isolation  of  his 
position,  changed  the  subject.  *'What  place  you 
get  um  Yangona  root?" 

"Big  ship  bring  um  plenty  Yangona  root,  white 
fellow  Kaimera  give  me  plenty." 

Sherwin  was  surprised  at  this  information  and 
determined  to  ask  Pomfrey  to  bring  over  a  fresh 
supply ;  then  his  mind  reverted  to  the  former  sub- 
ject. It  struck  him  as  comic  that  the  fellow 
should  be  so  trusting  and  so  ignorant.  He  talked 
out  loud  for  his  own  satisfaction,  not  expecting 
Coffee  to  understand.  "It's  a  funny  thing  that 
you  should  have  got  dumped  on  this  island. 
You'll  never  get  off,  you  poor  devil  I  You'll  never 
see  your  woman  and  your  pickininnies ;  don't  you 
think  it.  You'll  be  stuck  in  a  hole,  and  the  sand 
chucked  over  you."  Then,  after  a  pause,  "Fetch 
some  Yangona  and  we'll  have  a  drink." 

Coffee  was  glad  to  escape  from  the  fire  of  ques- 
tions and  the  talk  that  he  could  not  understand, 
and  was  glad  to  busy  himself  with  something  con- 
crete. When  he  came  with  the  root,  Sherwin  took 
some  from  him  and  chewed  in  silence.  It  was  the 
first  time  he  had  tasted  any  since  the  arrival  of 
the  two  doctors. 

As  they  sat  thus,  both  occupied  at  the  same  un- 
couth task,  Sherwin  was  often  amused  by  his  own 
picture  of  the  strangeness  of  the  scene.     He  was 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   157 

surprised  too  that  he  and  the  other  man,  products 
of  such  different  lands  and  civilizations,  should  be 
so  unfeignedly  glad  to  renew  their  old  manner  of 
life. 

This  was  the  first  evening  of  many  others  that 
followed  when  they  thus  sat  together,  and  let  their 
thoughts  wander  out  over  the  wild  land.  For  the 
most  part  they  sat  in  silence  and  each  lived  to  him- 
self his  own  life,  but  Sherwin  sometimes  found 
himself  wondering  if  Coffee  ever  thought  of  his 
wife  and  children.  He  himself  would  have  been 
glad  of  wife  and  children.  Yes,  with  a  wife,  he 
told  himself,  he  would  be  happy  indeed,  and 
would  never  want  to  go  back  to  the  world  of  civil- 
ization, unless,  perhaps,  his  brother  found  gold, 
and  that  would  no  doubt  alter  his  view*  *«fWith 
gold  he  would  have  power,  more  power  than  he 
wielded  here;  power  to  buy  women,  any  woman  he 
might  wish  for.  But  from  his  brother  he  had 
heard  no  good  news  lately,  and  he  was  beginning 
to  give  up  hope. 

The  evenings  with  Coffee  on  the  verandah  were 
his  relaxation  after  his  hard  days  of  work.  In 
the  daytime  Sherwin  was  a  hard  task-master ;  not 
only  did  he  keep  the  natives  at  their  road-making 
and  building,  but  had  made  them  race  over  the 
island  and  catch  all  the  goats.  These  he  pegged 
out  oil  tethers  near  the  camp.     He  had  also  taught 


158      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

the  natives  to  make  fences  and  stretch  wire  and 
had  enclosed  the  sheep  in  paddocks.  All  these 
activities  were  not  so  much  for  the  benefit  of  his 
employers  or  to  win  praise  from  Hicksey  as  for 
his  own  gratification,  as  signs  of  his  own  power. 

He  came  to  take  small  stock  of  what  Hicksey 
said,  whether  it  was  praise  or  blame,  and  took 
little  notice  of  him  when  he  came  at  certain  inter- 
vals on  his  visits  to  the  islands. 

Since  there  was  no  other  white  man  to  talk  to, 
Sherwin  had  made  a  one-sided  friendship  with 
Pomfrey  and  looked  forward  to  his  visits.  The 
old  seaman  brought  him  things  from  Kaimera, 
including  bottles  of  whisky;  and  the  two  men  very 
often  went  up  to  the  house  and  drank  together  and 
shared  the  gossip  of  the  two  islands.  It  was  Pom- 
frey who  told  him  the  story  of  the  fight  and  of 
Hubbard's  discomfiture.  At  first  he  had  been 
pleased  to  hear  of  Hicksey's  success,  and  very 
pleased  when  Hicksey  offered  him  the  post  of  as- 
sistant at  the  hospital.  He  took  a  thorough  in- 
terest in  learning  his  work,  but  he  was  annoyed 
that  all  his  overtures  of  friendship  should  be  so 
coldly  received  by  the  young  doctor. 

Hicksey,  on  his  occasional  visits  to  the  islands, 
was  always  civil,  but  he  never  let  Sherwin  forget 
that  they  came  from  different  levels  in  the  social 
strata,  and  this  the  latter  considered  to  be  uppish 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   159 

and  conceited.  If  the  young  fellow  was  going  to 
take  that  line,  he  would  show  him  he  could  very 
well  do  without  his  company,  and  so  he  would 
spend  the  evenings  on  his  own  verandah,  thinking 
his  own  thoughts,  and  learning  to  endure  his  soli- 
tude, and  sometimes  talking  to  the  silent-moving, 
enigmatic  black  fellow. 

All  through  the  days  of  calm  that  preceded  the 
hurricane,  Sherwin,  as  if  in  some  desperate  answer 
to  his  own  flagging  strength,  had  worked  the  na- 
tives pitilessly  hard.  After  his  work  he  would  lie 
gasping  on  his  bed.  The  heat  stifled  him,  and,  in 
spite  of  all  his  virile  strength,  sapped  him  of  his 
power.  He  lay  sometimes  for  hours  upon  his 
bed,  morose  and  sulky,  his  red  face  and  chest 
beaded  over  with  sweat,  cursing  at  the  country  and 
its  hardships,  and  thinking  enviously  of  the  land 
he  had  left.  And  yet  in  spite  of  his  maledictions 
upon  the  land,  he  knew  in  himself  that  it  would 
need  some  strong  outside  stimulus  to  shake  him 
from  the  new-found  way  of  life. 

During  these  days  of  extreme  heat  Coffee  kept 
his  distance,  for  all  the  latent  cruelty  in  the  white 
man  was  aroused,  and  moved  on  the  surface  of  his 
nature,  as  if  eager  to  meet  the  cruelty  of  the  tropi- 
cal heat  and  mingle  with  its  fierce  blaze  of  colour. 
One  of  its  manifestations  was  in  the  branding  and 
castrating  of  the  goats.     Coffee,  half -frightened, 


i6o      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

half  savagely  exultant,  helped ;  but,  when  they  had 
done  and  the  frightened  animals  made  off  bleating 
and  trembling  with  pain,  the  black  was  apprehen- 
sive for  his  own  skin  and  feared  to  meet  his  mas- 
ter's blood-shot  eye. 

With  the  first  breaking  of  the  waves  upon  the 
shore.  Coffee  was  seized  with  terror.  He  knew 
what  they  foreboded,  and,  half  in  English,  half 
in  his  own  language,  he  managed  to  convey  to 
Sherwin  something  of  their  significance.  To 
Sherwin  as  to  Hicksey  the  possibilities  of  danger 
came  at  first  as  a  stimulant.  His  care  was  to 
make  the  houses  secure,  and  while  thus  occupied 
he  felt  little  fear,  only  excitement ;  but  later,  when 
the  waves  gathered  in  size  and  came  crashing  upon 
the  shore,  and  there  was  nothing  left  to  do  but  to 
watch  and  wonder  and  guess  at  what  they  might 
forebode,  then  he  began,  little  by  little,  to  be  in- 
fected by  the  black  fellow's  fear. 

Fear,  once  allowed  an  entrance,  swells  like  a 
river  in  flood;  bursts  all  bonds  and  flows  into 
every  cranny  of  the  spirit.  Sherwin,  afraid  even 
of  himself  and  of  his  own  thoughts,  trembled  now 
before  that  ominous  silence  in  which  nature  took 
breath  before  the  fury  that  was  to  come.  He  knew 
that  he  dare  not  be  alone,  he  must  at  all  hazards 
keep  close  to  his  black  servant. 

Nothing  would  induce  Coffee  to  enter  either  of 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   161 

the  houses,  but  he  moved  to  and  fro  restlessly 
looking  for  hollows  in  the  sand-hills,  and  all  the 
while  mumbling  in  his  own  language  forebodings 
of  the  storm.  Both  white  man  and  black  felt  that 
they  needed  all  the  support  that  they  could  get; 
they  urgently  felt  that  they  must  be  near  to  other 
human  beings,  and  so  went  down  to  the  roughly 
made  hospital,  where  the  natives  were  all  gathered 
together  in  frightened  expectation. 

For  the  first  time  in  his  existence  Sherwin  knew 
that  he  was  but  one  of  a  number,  and  that  he  was 
losing  all  feeling  of  individual  aloofness.  All  his 
hectoring  superiority  dwindled  and  disappeared. 
He  was  only  one  amongst  a  crowd  of  frightened 
savages,  waiting  in  trepidation  and  impotence  to 
see  nature  put  forth  her  strength  and  assert  her 
terrible  mastery. 

The  hurricane  came  with  a  burst  of  fury,  driv- 
ing the  waves  far  up  the  beach.  With  the  first 
onrush  of  wind  the  flimsy  construction  of  the  hos- 
pital was  whirled  away  across  the  island,  and 
beds  and  sick  natives  were  tumbled  in  a  mass 
among  the  stinging  clouds  of  sand.  For  a  while 
Sherwin  knew  nothing  beyond  the  fact  that  the 
place  had  gone  and  that  he  was  lying  at  full 
length,  blinded  and  struggling  for  breath.  All 
his  energies  were  centred  upon  breathing,  getting 
air  into  his  lungs  without  swallowing  too  much 


i62      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

sand.  At  length  he  wriggled  himself  into  a  hol- 
low and  lay  there,  clutching  with  his  fingers  at 
the  grass  roots,  while  the  rain  drove  down  upon 
him  and  the  hurricane  flew  by  above  his  head. 

After  he  had  recovered  from  the  first  outraged 
surprise  and  panic  he  rose  to  a  crouching  position 
and  peered  round.  In  the  dim  light  he  could  see 
little  save  the  wild  scurry  of  elements,  and  now 
and  then  the  dark  form  of  some  native  who  stum- 
bled and  clutched  his  way  across  the  sand-hills,  to 
disappear  into  some  hollow.  A  fiercer  gust  of 
wind  half  rolled  him  over.  He  lay  close  to  the 
earth  and  muttered  prayers  to  his  long-forgotten 
God,  who  seemed  to  be  shouting  in  all  His  wrath 
from  the  heart  of  the  tempest.  How  many  hours 
he  lay  on  the  sand-hills  he  did  not  know,  but  he 
knew  that  night  had  come  quick  on  the  heels  of  the 
tempest  to  add  darkness  to  his  other  terrors.  Al- 
though the  wind  was  blowing  with  terrific  fury,  it 
would  have  been  possible,  had  he  had  the  will  and 
the  courage,  for  him  to  have  fought  his  way  to  his 
house.  But  instead  of  making  any  such  effort,  he 
lay  still  like  some  animal  wincing  under  a  hail  of 
blows.  Every  now  and  then  the  lightning  gave  a 
vivid  picture  of  the  island  and  the  fury  of  the  sea. 
In  the  distance  he  could  see  his  house  still  stand- 
ing, and  round  about  him  on  the  sand  were  the 
prone  figures  of  the  natives.     Then  blackness 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   163 

would  follow  the  flash,  and  he  was  conscious  of 
nothing  but  the  wind  and  the  water  screaming 
past. 

For  a  time  he  must  have  slept,  for  he  was  obliv- 
ious of  all  sensation,  then  suddenly  and  unex- 
pectedly he  became  conscious  of  something  mov- 
ing over  his  leg.  He  turned  and  groped  in  the 
darkness,  but  could  find  nothing.  Then  a  flash 
of  lightning  revealed  Coffee's  black  figure  crouch- 
ing at  his  feet.  He  was  unspeakably  glad  of  the 
black's  presence.  In  the  ensuing  darkness  he 
stretched  till  he  felt  the  round  head,  which  he  drew 
towards  him.  He  felt  an  unaccountable  and 
desperate  need  for  human  comradeship.  He 
longed  to  speak  but  could  find  no  words.  Some- 
how he  must  give  expression  to  his  newly  kindled 
consciousness.  "By  God,  by  God!"  he  shouted 
at  the  head  that  he  still  held  in  his  hands.  Cof- 
fee crept  nearer  and  shouted  something  that  was 
lost  in  a  crash  of  thunder.  ''All  right,  Master, 
all  right!"  The  two  men  lay  side  by  side,  glad 
of  each  other's  company  and  glad  to  have  heard 
each  other's  voices.  During  the  hours  that  fol- 
lowed there  grew  slowly,  inevitably,  as  does  a  seed 
that  forces  its  way  through  the  soil,  an  under- 
standing and  a  sympathy  between  the  two  men. 

Naked  in  fear  and  self-effacement  they  had  seen 
nature  in  all  her  ruthless  anger,  and  now,  as  the 


164      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

storm  abated,  felt  that  in  those  hours  of  subjec- 
tive terror  they  had  met  at  last  on  common  ground. 

In  the  morning  the  hurricane  abated,  though 
the  sea  ran  high,  sending  great  waves  roaring  up 
the  beach,  and  a  strong  wind  was  still  blowing. 
Sherwin,  cramped  and  bruised  from  the  long  night 
of  exposure,  walked  stiffly  between  the  sand-hills 
rousing  the  natives,  telling  them  to  bestir  them- 
selves and  make  a  fire  if  they  did  not  want  to  feel 
the  shape  of  his  boots.  Now  that  his  own  fear 
had  passed,  he  must  at  all  hazards  re-establish  his 
authority,  and  among  the  wet  and  miserable  na- 
tives this  was  no  very  difficult  task.  At  first  he 
was  a  little  diffident  of  his  own  power,  and  this 
made  him  unnecessarily  brutal,  but  gradually,  as 
he  recognized  that  his  prestige  was  little  shaken, 
he  gathered  courage  and  felt  that  he  could  afford 
to  speak  to  them  in  his  usual  half-hectoring,  half- 
joking  manner. 

The  next  few  days  were  spent  in  the  construc- 
tion of  a  new  hospital  resembling  that  which  had 
been  blown  away,  and  in  repairs  to  the  two  houses, 
both  of  which  had  successfully  stood  the  storm. 
By  the  time  Hicksey  turned  up  a  week  later  things 
w^ere  working  once  more  with  their  accustomed 
regularity  and  Sherwin  was  well  assured  of  all  his 
former  authority. 

The  two  men  had  little  to  say  to  one  another 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   165 

beyond  short  comments  upon  the  fierceness  of  the 
storm  and  conversation  directly  concerning  the 
native  patients  and  the  newly  wrecked  hospital. 
Hicksey  praised  the  ability  and  promptness  with 
which  Sherwin  had  acted,  and  then  gave  his  in- 
structions as  to  the  order  of  things  at  the  hospital. 
While  Sherwin  listened  in  silence  the  doctor 
thought  that  he  detected  a  scornful  curl  on  the 
man's  lip  and  a  look  of  mutiny  in  his  eye,  and 
later,  when  he  had  returned  to  his  own  house,  he 
had  a  distinct,  and,  as  he  felt,  a  growing  antipathy 
towards  the  red-haired  burly  fellow. 

Sherwin  on  his  part  returned  moody  and  sulky 
to  his  house.  He  was  annoyed  and  humiliated  by 
Hicksey's  visit.  Somehow  the  presence  of  the 
other  white  man  had  made  him  feel  ashamed  of 
his  behaviour  on  the  night  of  the  hurricane. 
Damn  the  man  with  his  superior  airs  and  his  "do 
this,  do  that."  Sherwin's  heart  painfully  con- 
tracted at  the  thought  that  any  of  the  blacks  might 
say  how  during  the  night  of  the  hurricane  he  had 
lain  terror-stricken  on  the  dunes.  He  needed  to 
assure  himself  that  he  was  every  bit  as  good  a 
man  as  the  doctor.  It  was  no  doubt  easy  enough 
for  Hicksey  to  carry  things  off  with  his  gentle- 
manly airs;  he  had  not  been  left  alone  amongst 
a  crowd  of  savages,  but  had  another  white  man 
and  three  white  women  to  keep  him  company. 


166      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

And  yet,  in  spite  of  his  excuse  to  himself,  Sher- 
win  knew  that  somehow  he  had  lost  caste,  lost  his 
distinction  as  a  white  man.  With  the  niggers  his 
position  was  still  safe  enough.  By  virtue  of  his 
physical  force  and  nervous  energy  he  could  always 
bully  them  into  submission,  but  he  feared  that 
Hicksey  might  see  him  for  what  he  was,  think 
him  to  be  a  coward,  and  in  his  damned  superior 
way  treat  him  as  such.  He  would  show  him  that 
in  no  way  would  he  truckle  to  his  arrogant  as- 
surance. 

For  the  rest  of  Hicksey's  visit  he  saw  little  of 
him,  and  when  the  day  of  his  departure  came,  al- 
though Sherwin  knew  that  he  was  leaving  for 
Fenton  Island  that  afternoon,  he  decided  that  he 
would  not  go  down  to  the  shore  as  was  customary 
to  see  him  off  and  receive  last  instructions,  but  in 
his  place  he  sent  Coffee  to  help  the  doctor  down 
with  the  boat.  As  soon  as  he  had  sent  Coffee,  he 
was  half  afraid  of  his  own  daring,  for  he  knew 
Hicksey  was  not  a  man  to  be  trifled  with.  For 
a  while  he  watched  Coffee's  figure,  becoming 
smaller  in  the  distance,  then  he  went  into  his  room, 
picked  up  one  of  the  magazines  that  lay  littered  on 
the  floor,  and  turned  over  the  pages.  After  what 
seemed  a  long  time  he  heard  Coffee's  steps  on  the 
verandah  and  a  knock  at  the  door. 

"Well,  what  is  it?"  he  shouted,  testily. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   167 

Coffee  opened  the  door  and  stood  looking  em- 
barrassed. "Doctor  he  say,  'Tell  Mr.  Sherwin 
come  along  down  to  the  beach.'  " 

"Did  he  tell  you  to  tell  me  that?  What  was  it 
he  said?" 

"He  said,  *Tell  Mr.  Sherwin  come  down  and 
talk  to  me.'  " 

Sherwin  lowered  at  him;  Coffee  stood  awk- 
wardly shifting  from  one  foot  to  the  other.  "All 
right,  then,  get  out  of  here.  What  are  you  wait- 
ing for?"  Coffee  muttered  something  and  then 
vanished.  Sherwin  swore  to  himself  as  he  walked 
slowly  across  the  room  to  pick  up  his  hat.  Then 
deliberately  taking  his  time  he  walked  through 
the  door,  down  the  steps  of  the  verandah,  and 
across  the  white  glare  of  the  sand-dunes.  He 
found  Hicksey  sitting  on  the  edge  of  his  boat, 
which  had  not  been  pulled  down. 

The  doctor  waited  till  he  had  come  down,  then 
said:  "I  want  you  to  give  me  a  hand  with  my 
boat,  Sherwin." 

Sherwin  said  nothing,  but  took  hold  of  one  of 
the  bulwarks,  and  together  they  dragged  her  down 
to  the  break  of  the  waves,  where  they  paused 
for  a  moment. 

"Thank  you,"  said  Hicksey,  "and  another  time 
don't  send  your  servant  to  do  your  own  work." 
Before  giving  Sherwin  time  to  say  anything,  he 


i68      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

went  on:  "I  wanted  to  tell  you  that  I  think  you 
are  working  the  convalescent  natives  too  hard. 
There's  no  reason  to  break  their  backs;  I  want 
you  to  slack  off  a  little.  If  you  work  in  the  morn- 
ings, that's  quite  enough.  Give  them  the  after- 
noons to  themselves." 

Sherwin  turned  very  red.  "It  is  I  who  have  to 
keep  discipline  here,  doctor.  You  had  better  let 
me  keep  it  my  own  way  and  manage  my  own  men." 

Hicksey  looked  his  man  straight  in  the  face,  and 
there  was  rising  anger  in  his  voice  as  he  said: 
"They  don't  happen  to  be  your  men.  They  are 
here  under  my  charge,  and  you  are  to  carry  out 
my  orders."  Then  breaking  off:  "Give  another 
shove  at  the  boat,  will  you?" 

Both  men  ran  out  through  the  waves,  shoving 
the  boat  before  them,  then  Hicksey  jumped  on 
board. 

Sherwin  walked  slowly  back  over  the  sand-hills. 
He  cursed  alternately  at  Hicksey  and  then  at  him- 
self for  being  so  easily  mastered.  Coffee  he  found 
sitting  on  the  steps  waiting  for  him.  He  walked 
past  in  silence  and  then  turned  and  told  the  black 
to  begone  into  the  kitchen. 

That  evening  he  got  very  drunk  on  whisky,  and 
felt  brave  enough  to  pitch  Hicksey  into  the  sea  and 
his  boat  after  him.  The  next  morning  he  stayed 
late  in  bed  to  sleep  off  the  effects.     When  he 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   169 

finally  got  down  to  the  hospital,  he  found  the 
natives  waiting  for  him  in  front  of  the  ward.  It 
was  not  usual  for  him  to  be  late.  He  felt  a  throb- 
bing in  his  temples  and  was  disinclined  for  work. 
He  told  the  blacks  they  could  take  a  holiday  and 
then  himself  sat  down  and  dozed  in  the  shade. 
After  his  mid-day  meal  he  called  to  Coffee  to 
bring  out  some  Yangona  root,  and  all  through  the 
afternoon  sat  chewing  and  drinking.  Its  effect 
after  the  whisky  was  soothing. 

For  the  next  few  days  he  kept  the  natives  mildly 
employed,  but  now  that  he  had  not  complete  con- 
trol, he  ceased  to  feel  that  pride  in  his  work  and 
pleasure  in  his  power  which  hitherto  had  kept  him 
to  his  task.  If  the  doctor  knew  so  much  better 
than  he  did  how  to  manage  the  island,  let  him 
have  some  of  the  responsibility  of  keeping  the  beg- 
gars in  order. 

Since  he  was  now  not  much  occupied,  he  took  to 
sitting  in  his  room,  sometimes  talking  to  himself, 
sometimes  looking  through  old  papers,  and  keep- 
ing himself  cool  with  occasional  nips  of  whisky 
and  water.  He  began  to  hate  the  life  he  led, 
from  which  he  knew  he  could  not  break  away, 
and  only  in  the  evenings  when  he  drank  Kava 
with  Coffee  did  he  ever  feel  the  quiet  sense  of  en- 
joyment of  the  earlier  months.  The  Kava  seemed 
certainly  to  calm  his  nerves  and  steady  him  after 


170      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

the  whisky.  Sometimes  in  moments  of  clear- 
sightedness, that  came  to  him  after  many  bowls  of 
the  white  pulpy  liquid,  he  would  think  regretfully 
of  his  brother  on  the  gold-fields  and  curse  his  own 
lot  that  had  brought  him  to  such  an  outlandish 
spot,  to  a  life  so  distant  from  that  of  civilized  man. 


CHAPTER  XII 

IN  the  civilized  countries  of  Europe  the  wheels 
of  social  organization  turn  in  their  predes- 
tined grooves.  Man  lives  as  he  can  adapt 
himself  to  their  inexorable  movement,  and,  in  the 
end,  his  individual  existence  is  crushed  by  the 
ever-urging  destiny  of  the  race  that  carries  his 
children  onward  he  knows  not  whither.  He  lives 
not  by  his  own  virtue,  but  because  he  happens  to 
function  out  some  small  cog  or  piston  of  that  in- 
tricate machine  whose  course  he  can  never  alter, 
whose  destiny  he  can  never  understand.  He  per- 
forms his  task,  and  is  part  of  the  onward  rolling 
of  the  wheels.  Religion  and  morality  teach  him 
to  walk  straightly  in  the  path  of  his  subjection. 
He  survives  by  virtue  of  their  wisdom.  Stripped 
of  them  he  would  be  but  a  bleeding  fragment  of 
humanity,  for  man  is  not  yet  permitted  to  live  as 
an  individual,  and  it  has  been  but  the  dream  of 
the  greatest  among  men  to  live  as  arbiters  of  their 
own  law,  as  creators  of  their  own  values. 

When  a  man  is  taken  out  of  the  civilization  in 
which  he  has  been  taught  to  exist  and  is  told  to 

171 


172      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

live  as  best  he  can  by  the  strength  of  his  individual 
will,  the  bonds  forged  and  held  together  by  his  old 
manner  of  life  are  gradually  loosened.  The  re- 
ligion and  morality  which  he  has  been  taught, 
which  are  not  his,  but  belong  to  the  society  of 
which  once  he  formed  a  part,  fall  away  and  there 
is  left  only  that  stripped  and  raw  nucleus  of  life 
which  lies  so  close  to  the  brute  from  which  it  was 
evolved. 

While  Sherwin  had  lived  on  Kanna  Island  he 
had  found  no  aids  to  hold  him  to  the  standards  of 
his  former  life.  Formerly,  he  had  lived  by  other 
men's  opinions  and  had  found  his  place  easily 
enough  among  the  rough  and  tumble  life  of  a 
young  colony.  Now  he  was  altogether  alone  and 
without  another  white  man,  he  had  not  even  a 
woman  who  could  help  him  crystallize  and  make 
concrete  the  sense  of  his  own  personality.  The 
black  men  among  whom  he  lived  were  of  little 
help,  for  they  too  were  outcasts  living  far  from 
their  native  land.  Coffee  perhaps  was  more  piti- 
fully an  outcast  than  any  of  the  others,  and  Sher- 
win saw  in  the  black  fellow's  helpless  isolation  a 
reflection  of  his  own  ever-increasing  loneliness. 

During  the  time  that  his  hand  had  been 
poisoned,  he  had  suffered  the  agonies  of  despair, 
and  at  times  had  grovelled  in  fear,  blinded  and 
appalled  by  nature's  cruel  indifference.     Later  he 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   173 

had  tried  to  look  away  and  forget  that  glimpse  of 
reality ;  but  he  could  never  forget.  Fear  had  then 
entered  into  his  soul,  fear  that  weakened  and 
harassed  and  made  him  grasp  at  the  easiest  mode 
of  existence.  Again  on  the  night  of  the  hurricane 
he  had  lain  in  terror  on  the  sand-hills,  and  had 
felt  himself  equal  in  feebleness  with  the  despised 
natives.  Now,  no  longer  by  any  right  of  su- 
periority of  race,  but  only  by  his  greater  strength 
and  brutality  could  he  rule  them.  Yes,  and  he 
feared  Hicksey  too,  and  envied  him  the  supports 
that  he  himself  had  lost.  He  cursed  him  for  tak- 
ing away  his  last  means  of  asserting  power,  for  he 
had  grasped  at  power  as  at  the  one  plank  by  which 
to  float.  If  daily  he  could  be  reminded  of  his 
power,  he  might  still  find  support.  But  here 
Hicksey  had  stepped  in  with  his  cool  authority, 
and  rather  than  be  under  the  direction  of  another 
man,  Sherwin  would  follow  the  line  of  least  resist- 
ance and  live  in  what  pleasure  he  could  find  from 
day  to  day. 

It  thus  came  about  that  Sherwin  degenerated 
from  the  keen  hopeful  man  who  twelve  months 
earlier  had  landed  upon  the  island,  to  the  gloomy 
and  savage  being  who  from  time  to  time  let  show 
fierce  strains  of  cruelty  and  lust.  The  bonds  by 
which  society  had  held  him  were  being  loosened 
and  would  soon  fall  away. 


174      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

As  the  days  passed,  Sherwin  felt  their  dull 
sameness  to  be  piled  against  him  till  they  formed 
the  upward  slope  of  some  great  mountain  that  he 
could  never  climb.  He  thought  that  he  was  now 
indifferent  to  anything  that  they  could  bring. 
Part  of  him  hoped  to  escape  and  to  leave  for  ever 
the  island,  and  part  of  him  knew  that  he  could 
not  rise  to  the  effort  of  a  change.  Then  quite  un- 
expectedly the  dull  line  of  monotony  that  stretched 
above  him  became  taut  and  snapped,  and  life,  im- 
perative and  vigorous,  came  with  crude  problems 
and  urgent  questions. 

He  was  sitting  in  his  room  one  afternoon  when 
Coffee  came  to  the  door  and  told  him  that  he  had 
sighted  in  the  distance  the  sail  of  Hicksey's  boat. 
Sherwin  was  at  the  well-worn  and  ceaseless  oc- 
cupation of  turning  over  the  leaves  of  newspapers 
that  he  knew  by  heart.  He  was  a  little  tipsy,  for 
he  had  had  several  glasses  of  whisky,  and  at  the 
time  took  small  notice  of  the  announcement,  but 
later,  for  want  of  anything  better  to  do,  he  went 
out  to  watch  the  arrival  of  the  boat. 

When  he  saw  that  there  were  two  figures  on 
board,  he  stood  still  and  stared  in  astonishment. 
Then  his  heart  beat  with  a  thump  against  his  ribs 
as  he  recognized  that  one  of  them  was  a  woman. 
The  first  words  that  sprung  involuntarily  to  his 
lips  were  a  curse  against  the  doctor  and  his  folly 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   175 

in  bringing  a  woman  to  the  island.  He  felt  his 
heart  beat  quick  and  sudden  in  his  breast  and 
knew  that  in  the  last  few  seconds  the  aspect  of  his 
life  had  been  changed.  The  first  thought  that 
struggled  to  clearness  out  of  the  turmoil  of  his 
brain  was  that  he  must  wash  and  tidy  himself. 
Close  on  its  heels  came  the  thought  that  if  he  did 
so  the  doctor  would  notice  and  laugh  at  him. 
But  why  should  he  not  tidy  himself  for  a  lady? 
Then  again  he  cursed  the  doctor.  Yes,  he  would 
tidy  himself,  there  was  just  time  for  that  before 
the  boat  arrived  at  the  harbour. 

He  set  off  towards  his  house  at  a  run.  Then  he 
clipped  his  beard  and  washed  his  face  and  neck. 
He  felt  strangely  different  after  these  unusual 
exercises  and  a  little  ashamed  of  himself.  No 
doubt,  too,  that  he  was  pleased  and  excited,  and 
yet  somewhere  at  the  back  of  his  mind  he  was 
annoyed.  When  he  arrived  on  the  beach  the  doc- 
tor had  already  grounded  his  boat  and  was  carry- 
ing Alice  Desmond  through  the  surf. 

Sherwin  had  not  seen  a  woman  for  more  than 
twelve  months,  and,  now  that  he  was  so  close  to 
one,  became  morbidly  embarrassed.  He  found 
himself  singularly  ill  at  ease  and  conscious  of  his 
newly  titivated  appearance.  He  longed  to  look, 
and  did  not  know  how  to  look.  Damn  it,  there 
could  be  no  harm  in  looking  at  the  woman  I     He 


176      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

stared  awkwardly,  till  Hicksey  told  him  to  give  a 
hand  with  the  boat. 

He  told  Coffee  to  carry  up  his  boxes  and  then 
walked  away  with  her  towards  his  own  house. 
Sherwin  was  left  among  the  blacks  to  stare  after 
them.  Again  he  silently  cursed  Hicksey,  and  this 
time  included  the  woman  in  his  malediction.  He 
sent  the  natives  flying  on  different  errands,  scatter- 
ing them  in  all  directions.  They  knew  that  when 
he  spoke  in  that  tone  it  was  best  to  obey  smartly. 
When  he  was  alone  he  walked  along  the  beach,  not 
heeding  where  he  went.  He  had  in  his  mind  no 
definite  desire  or  plan  of  action,  but  through  his 
brain  there  raced  pictures  of  vague  possibilities, 
of  unformed  schemes,  incomplete  visions.  Vague 
forces  stirred  within  him  and  sudden  violent  attri- 
butes of  life  had  been  awakened  by  the  half-con- 
temptuous, half -frightened  look  on  a  woman's 
face. 

For  the  next  few  days  Sherwin  had  small  oppor- 
unity  of  seeing  anything  of  Alice  Desmond.  She 
stayed  nearly  all  the  time  in  the  house,  and  only 
twice  went  with  Dr.  Hicksey  to  the  hospital.  On 
both  occasions  Sherwin  made  excuses  for  being 
there,  but  he  had  no  opportunity  of  seeing  her 
alone,  and  he  found  that  his  embarrassment  had 
in  no  way  abated.  When  he  was  away  by  him- 
self, thinking  about  her,  he  was  bold  enough,  and 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   177 

he  would  spend  much  of  his  day  watching  the  doc- 
tor's house  from  the  high  dune  that  separated  it 
from  his  own.  All  his  instinct  urged  him  thus  to 
spy  upon  her,  and  he  vaguely  wished  that  he 
might  see  her  alone  to  talk  to  her,  though  what  he 
would  say  on  that  occasion  he  had  not  yet  planned. 
In  the  meanwhile  he  watched  for  his  opportunity. 

The  opportunity  at  length  came,  when  one  day 
he  saw  her  leave  the  house,  and,  instead  of  walk- 
ing towards  the  hospital,  walk  in  the  other  direc- 
tion along  the  beach.  He  watched  her  cross  the 
beach  and  then  mount  the  cliff  on  the  other  side, 
then  she  disappeared  from  his  sight.  He  deter- 
mined to  follow.  He  kept  behind  the  sand-hills, 
but  gradually  got  nearer  and  nearer.  For  a  while 
he  wondered  why  she  was  walking  in  that  direc- 
tion, then  the  obvious  explanation  occurred  that 
she  was  merely  walking  for  pleasure  in  the  cool  of 
the  evening.  Till  she  was  farther  from  the  house 
he  could  keep  out  of  sight,  then  perhaps  he  would 
show  himself,  he  would  speak  to  her,  make  her  rec- 
ognize his  existence. 

Alice  Desmond  had  walked  more  than  half  a 
mile  from  the  house  before  she  checked  to  look 
down  from  a  cliff-top  into  the  clear  pools  of  water 
in  the  dead-coral  rock  at  its  base.  As  she  stood 
watching  the  shadows  of  the  rocks  lengthen  and 
stretch  out  across  the  sea  she  suddenly  felt  that  she 


178      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

was  being  watched.  She  did  not  know  from 
where,  but  some  sense  told  her  that  eyes  were 
keenly  following  her  movements.  She  looked 
round  but  could  see  no  one.  For  a  few  steps  she 
continued  her  way,  then  quickly  she  turned  and 
saw  Sherwin's  red  face  disappear  behind  a  bush. 
She  was  frightened.  What  could  the  man  want? 
Why  was  he  following  her?  She  turned  and  hur- 
riedly began  to  retrace  her  steps.  Sherwin,  seeing 
her  intention  and  fearing  that  he  might  lose  his 
opportunity,  broke  his  way  through  the  bushes  and 
ran  to  cut  off  her  retreat.  Panting  from  his  exer- 
tions and  flushed  with  excitement  he  stood  barring 
her  way. 

For  some  moments  they  stood  looking  at  each 
other.  The  woman  was  by  this  time  pale  and 
frightened.  She  spoke  with  a  slight  quaver  in  her 
voice.  'What  do  you  mean  by  following  me  like 
this?     Let  me  pass,  please." 

Now  that  it  had  come  to  a  personal  contest,  and 
he  was  face  to  face  with  her,  Sherwin's  shyness 
and  embarrassment  were  all  gone.  The  fact  of 
her  sex  no  longer  abashed  him;  it  rather  brought 
out  all  his  natural  bravado.  "Not  so  fast,  please, 
I've  come  for  a  talk  with  you.  It's  not  often  I 
have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  lady  on  this  island." 

She  looked  at  him  and  then  away  on  either  side. 
On  one  side  there  was  the  cliff,  on  the  other  thick 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   179 

bushes.  Then  she  came  a  step  nearer.  "Let  me 
pass,  please,  I  don't  want  to  talk  to  you." 

He  stood  blocking  the  way. 

"Help!  help !"  she  screamed. 

He  laughed  at  her.  "It's  no  use  screaming 
against  this  wind,  no  one  could  possibly  hear 
you." 

"I  beg  you  to  let  me  pass." 

"Certainly,  my  dear,  but  you  must  give  me  a 
kiss  first." 

She  stood  breathing  hard,  white. and  trembling. 
As  he  came  towards  her,  she  watched  him  as  some 
fascinated  animal  watches  the  approach  of  a 
snake. 

Suddenly  he  caught  her  in  his  arms  and  kissed 
her.  With  a  half  scream  she  struggled  to  arm's 
length  striking  at  his  face ;  then  she  ducked  out  of 
his  grip  and  ran  towards  the  house. 

Sherwin  had  received  a  smart  blow  on  the  cheek 
and  was  surprised  at  her  sudden  movement  and 
her  strength.  He  shouted  an  oath  and  ran  a  few 
paces  in  pursuit,  then,  seeing  that  she  was  near 
the  top  of  the  hill,  gave  up.  For  a  time  he  stood 
biting  his  lips,  then  he  walked  moodily  away 
across  the  island ;  he  would  let  things  settle  down 
an  hour  or  so  before  he  again  made  his  appear- 
ance. 

Nurse  Desmond,  frightened  and  trembling,  hur- 


i8o      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

ried  on  across  the  sand-hills.  When  she  reached 
the  doctor's  house  she  found  it  empty.  She  went 
on  to  the  hospital,  where  she  found  him  at  work. 
She  was  very  much  excited  and  flushed.  "I  want 
to  speak  to  you  at  once,"  she  said,  "somewhere 
where  we  can  be  by  ourselves." 

"I  can't  come  just  now,"  said  Hicksey,  intent 
on  what  he  was  doing.  *'This  is  important.  I 
shan't  be  finished  for  an  hour." 

"But  I  must  speak  to  you  at  once,"  she  insisted. 
"Please  come.     I  really  must  speak  to  you." 

He  saw  now  how  excited  she  was,  so  he  left  his 
work  and  went  out  with  her.  She  led  him  some 
distance  over  the  sand-hills  before  she  told  him  of 
her  encounter  with  Sherwin.  In  the  first  flush  of 
his  anger  he  thought  that  he  would  at  once  dismiss 
the  man,  then,  as  he  listened,  it  dawned  upon  him 
that,  should  he  dismiss  Sherwin  for  making  love 
to  his  mistress,  it  would  place  him  in  a  false  posi- 
tion. At  any  rate,  he  could  speak  as  man  to  man 
with  the  fellow  and  tell  him  to  keep  his  hands  off. 
For  some  moments  he  said  nothing,  but  stood 
thinking  out  the  situation. 

She  was  anxious  and  disappointed  at  his  si- 
lence, for  she  had  expected  some  direct  show  of 
sympathy  and  an  immediate  promise  of  revenge. 
"You  must  dismiss  him  at  once,"  she  urged.  "I 
can't  stay  on  the  island  while  that  brute's  here," 


% 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   181 

Hicksey  tried  to  explain  why  he  could  not  dis- 
miss the  man. 

''But  I  simply  can't  stay  here  while  he's  about; 
I'm  sure  he's  dangerous." 

''No,  dear,  I  can't  dismiss  him,  but  I  can  make 
him  understand  that  if  he  troubles  you,  it  will  be 
the  worse  for  him." 

She  stood  looking  at  Hicksey,  her  eyes  full  of 
reproach  and  disappointment.  This  was  not  how 
she  had  expected  him  to  behave.  He  had  shown 
no  sympathy,  had  never  seen  her  point  of  view, 
but  was  merely  occupied  with  his  own  personal 
difficulties  that  the  situation  had  raised.  As  he 
turned  to  go  back  to  his  work  she  burst  out  cry- 
ing: "Don't  you  see  I  depend  on  you.  I've 
sacrificed  everything.  I'm  all  alone;  you  must 
protect  me." 

Hicksey  turned  to  her  with  a  shade  of  annoy- 
ance; he  never  could  stand  tears  of  any  sort. 

"I  promise  that  the  man  shall  not  annoy  you 
again ;  but  surely  you  must  see  that  I  cannot  dis- 
miss him"  Then  after  a  pause  he  added:  "It 
was  unwise  your  coming  to  the  island,  I  never 
foresaw  this." 

She  was  still  shaken  with  sobs. 

"You  must  go  back  to  the  other  island,"  he  said. 

"Yes,  take  me  back  at  once ;  but  there,  when  I 
am  alone — O  my  God,  my  God,  I  am  unhappy." 


i82      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

Hicksey  had  not  sufficient  penetration  to  see 
any  cause  for  this  sudden  outburst  of  misery. 
*'Come,"  he  said,  ''it's  not  as  bad  as  all  that.  I'll 
shake  the  fellow  up;  I'll  make  him  understand 
that  he's  to  keep  his  hands  off;  but  clearly  I  can't 
dismiss  him." 

''Then  you'll  take  me  away." 

"Yes,  I'll  take  you  away  as  soon  as  I  can." 

"When  will  that  be?" 

"It's  damned  annoying  all  this.  I've  got  a  lot 
of  work  to  do  now;  I  shall  have  to  stay  here  for 
another  week." 

For  a  moment  she  checked  her  tears.  She 
looked  at  him  in  astonishment,  marvelling  that 
he  could  be  so  callous  to  her  need.  Then  almost 
coldly  she  asked,  "Please  take  me  over  and  then 
come  back  again." 

"I  can't,"  he  said;  "that  would  waste  three 
days,  and  I  have  a  great  deal  of  important  work 
to  do.  I  can't  play  at  my  profession;  but  I  tell 
you  I'll  make  things  safe  for  you." 

She  suddenly  flared  out  at  him:  "You  don't 
love  me,  you  don't  love  me  a  bit !  Oh !  why  did  I 
come  here,  why  did  I  come  here?" 

She  dropped  on  her  knees  on  the  sand,  and  then 
fell  forward  shaken  with  sobs.  This  was  the  first 
scene  of  the  sort  that  Hicksey  had  ever  experi- 
enced, and  he  was  not  pleased  with  it,  neither  was 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   183 

he  taking  it  very  well.  At  that  moment  he  was 
prepared  to  admit  her  accusation,  and  he  was  as 
unable  as  the  unhappy  woman  to  supply  an  an- 
swer to  her  question. 

With  flushed,  tear-stained  face  she  accused  him. 
''It's  always  your  work.  You  care  for  that  far 
more  than  you  care  for  me.  You'll  never  give  up 
the  least  little  bit  to  please  me." 

As  he  looked  down  at  her,  he  felt  strangely  de- 
graded by  the  whole  scene,  and  was  ashamed  of 
himself  for  being  stung  to  answer  this  last  accusa- 
tion. 'Tve  given  up  all  my  work,  all  my  work 
that  really  mattered.  I  must  at  least  do  what  I'm 
paid  to  do." 

"You  don't  love  me,  you  don't  love  me,"  she 
wailed. 

At  this  he  was  exasperated.  "Alice,  do  try  and 
be  reasonable.  I've  given  you  my  word;  do  try 
and  have  a  little  faith  in  me." 

She  made  no  response  to  this.  He  stood  look- 
ing at  her  for  some  thirty  seconds.  Then,  as  if  to 
close  the  matter,  "Anyway,  I've  got  my  work  to  do, 
and  I'm  going  to  do  it."  He  began  to  walk  away 
towards  the  hospital. 

At  once  she  scrambled  to  her  feet  and  ran  after 
him. 

By  the  time  they  came  to  the  hospital,  she  had 
pulled  herself  together.     For  a  time  she  sat  watch- 


i84      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

ing  him  at  work,  then  he  called  to  her  and  gave 
her  some  bandages  to  roll.  He  was  still  ruffled 
and  annoyed,  and  as  he  now  and  then  caught 
sight  of  her,  he  marvelled  that  only  four  months 
ago,  the  charm  of  that  same  woman,  occupied  at 
the  same  task,  should  have  driven  him  out  into 
the  night.  The  thought  of  that  night  came  with  a 
pang.  He  remembered  all  his  fine  resolutions, 
and  as  he  looked  at  her  sitting  there,  so  dejected 
and  obedient,  he  admitted  that  she  was  not  worth 
the  sacrifice. 

At  supper  that  evening  they  both  felt  awkward 
and  strained.  Hicksey  was  annoyed  because  he 
had  spent  an  hour  looking  for  Sherwin  and  had 
failed  to  find  him.  Alice  Desmond  was  nervous 
and  ill  at  ease  wondering  where  the  man  had  got 
to.  She  also  felt  that  she  had  lost  ground  with 
the  doctor,  that  perhaps  she  might  never  be  able 
to  make  up.  There  was  suddenly  some  barrier 
between  them  that  she  could  not  surmount,  that 
she  did  not  even  know  how  to  approach.  She 
hated  Sherwin  the  more  passionately  for  being  the 
cause  of  her  misfortune,  and  all  the  while  there 
was  on  her  a  singular  dread  as  to  what  the  wild, 
fierce-looking  fellow  might  do. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THERE  is  about  a  tropical  night  a  disposi- 
tion of  relaxation  and  pain — the  more 
patent  activities  kindled  by  the  sunlight 
have  ceased,  and  all  living  things  accept  eagerly 
a  respite  from  the  hard  brilliance  of  the  day. 
Not  only  the  stars  but  other  unapproachable  real- 
ities are  now  revealed.  The  curtain  of  light  has 
been  drawn  aside,  and  behind  one  can  discern 
the  ever-fructifying  genius  of  life  pushing  up- 
ward, ceaseless  and  deliberate.  All  things  would 
fain  rest,  but  there  is  no  rest,  only  relaxation ;  for 
to  rest  is  to  die,  and  in  that  knowledge  there  is 
pain.  The  power  of  death  is  now  more  clearly 
revealed,  and  life  which  grows  upon  its  own  de- 
cay. 

Over  Kanna  Island  such  a  tropical  night  now 
rested,  stilling  its  human  activities.  In  a  long 
and  irregular  line  the  land  spread  itself  beneath 
the  pale  moonlight.  The  coral  reefs  with  the 
waves  breaking  amongst  them  showed  white  and 
black  like  lace  stretched  on  velvet.  The  land 
stood  grey  and  definite,  in  the  ambient  haze,  in 
some  places  rising  to  high  cliffs  and  headlands, 

185 


i86      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

hill-tops  with  rough  boulders,  in  others  bending 
to  smooth  sweeps  of  blown  sand  and  undulating 
dunes.  The  thickets  that  spread  over  its  surface 
filled  the  hollows  and  valleys,  and  the  spiked 
clumps  of  spinifex  grass  showed  white  in  the 
moonlight  against  the  grey  sweeps  of  sand.  The 
houses  of  the  white  men  looked  now  very  small 
and  insignificant.  They  seemed  dwarfed  by  the 
high  sand-hill  that  rose  between  them.  The  white 
surface  of  the  roofs  caught  the  moonlight  and 
showed  in  marked  contrast  with  the  dark  shadows 
that  they  cast. 

At  the  north  point  of  the  island  there  is  a  long 
flat  sand  beach  where  turtles  bury  their  eggs. 
Close  along  the  break  of  the  waves  there  is  a  white 
ridge  composed  entirely  of  small  fragments  of 
broken  shells.  This  ridge  was  touched  by  the 
moonlight  and  shone  brightly.  Along  its  edge 
Sherwin  was  walking  up  and  down,  to  and  fro. 
He  walked  to  its  extremity  and  then  turned  and 
walked  back.  Again  and  again  he  paced  its 
length.  The  waves,  now  and  then,  washed  over 
his  feet,  but  of  them  he  took  no  heed.  His  eyes 
were  directed  straight  in  front  of  him  on  the  white 
line  of  the  ridge,  and  when  he  reached  its  limit 
he  turned  and  retraced  his  steps.  There  was  only 
a  faint  breeze  and  the  night  was  very  still  now. 
A  silence  gentle  and  powerful  enveloped  all  the 


^  '  ^ 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   187 

land.  The  man  upon  the  beach  and  the  waves 
that  broke  at  his  feet  were  alone  restless.  Inces- 
sant and  monotonous  the  waves  drove  against  the 
shore,  building  and  destroying  the  line  of  frag- 
ments upon  which  he  walked.  Once  he  stopped 
and  dipped  his  hands  in  the  water,  which  was 
warm  as  his  own  blood.  As  he  straightened  him- 
self, it  seemed  as  if  he  lifted  on  his  shoulders  the 
weight  of  the  tropical  night ;  then,  again  as  if  mes- 
merized by  its  whiteness,  he  paced  along  the  line 
of  the  beach. 

All  that  evening  he  had  wandered  over  the  is- 
land, and  instead  of  returning  for  his  meal  he  had 
walked  farther  and  farther  from  the  houses. 
Now  he  had  come  to  the  end  of  the  land. 

There  were  forces  moving  in  him  of  which  he 
had  no  previous  experience.  They  had  driven 
him  onward  till  he  had  been  checked  at  this 
furthest  limit  by  the  ever-moving  and  passionless 
sea.  Where  they  would  drive  him  next  he  knew 
not,  but  only  that  they  gnawed  and  tortured,  and 
that  the  pain  of  the  night  and  the  pain  of  the 
tropics  mingled  with  that  of  his  own  soul. 

Besides  pain  and  discontent,  there  was  in  his 
mind  fierce  justification  for  all  that  he  had  done, 
for  all  that  he  could  do.  Why  then  so  mildly 
submit  to  the  torture  of  indecision?  There  came 
a  sudden  sense  of  his  extraordinary  isolation. 


i88      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

He  was  alone  in  the  midst  of  a  sea,  on  the  borders 
of  a  foreign  continent,  and  there  were  unknown 
devils  raging  in  his  heart.  He  had  a  glimpse,  a 
flashing  remembrance  of  his  boyhood,  his  friends 
and  relatives  in  England;  that  unclouded  time 
was  infinitely  remote.  The  contrast  to  his  present 
state  was  too  terrible  to  be  faced.  It  was  bad 
enough,  God  knew,  to  be  on  this  cursed  island, 
but  what  devils  of  fear  and  lust  should  drive  him 
thus  to  the  very  edge  of  existence?  Should  he 
step  right  over  the  edge,  out  into  the  waves  and 
there  be  drowned,  and  thus  cool  his  raging  ap- 
petite? No,  his  instinct  of  life  was  too  strong  for 
,that.  He  suddenly  swerved  from  his  path, 
crossed  the  wide  beach  and  forced  his  way  be- 
tween the  prickly  acacia  bushes.  He  cared  little 
for  their  thorns,  but  walked  headlong  on,  making 
as  straight  a  line  as  he  was  able  for  the  settlement. 
The  fever  of  his  emotion  carried  him  through  the 
thickest  scrub,  the  empty  desolation  of  the  land 
urged  him  to  hasten  on  toward  proximity.  He 
took  no  thought  for  what  he  would  do  when  he 
reached  the  houses. 

He  skirted  widely  the  native  camp,  for  he  feared 
the  dogs  might  hear  him,  and,  like  most  walkers 
in  the  night  he  had  a  dread  of  any  sudden  noise. 
As  he  neared  his  own  house  he  saw  that  there 
were  no  lights  burning.     The  outhouse  at  the 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   189 

back,  where  he  knew  Coffee  slept,  was  also  dark. 
He  thought  the  time  must  be  between  one  and  two. 
Every  one  no  doubt  was  asleep.  He  stood  still  for 
some  moments  looking  at  his  own  house,  then  he 
skirted  the  high  sand-hill  leaving  it  behind  on  his 
left.  In  the  doctor's  house  there  were  no  lights 
either.  They  must  be  in  there  together,  asleep. 
He  slowly  and  cautiously  approached.  The 
moonlight  was  very  bright ;  he  did  not  wish  to  be 
seen.  Both  doors  were  shut,  but  the  windows 
were  wide  open. 

In  the  house  there  were  four  rooms.  On  one 
side  of  the  central  passage  there  was  the  sitting- 
room  and  the  room  used  by  Hicksey  for  experi- 
mental work.  The  two  on  the  other  side  were 
bedrooms,  their  windows  opened  on  to  the  ver- 
andah, and  they  had  a  door  opening  between 
them.  He  tried,  without  mounting  the  verandah 
steps,  to  look  into  one  of  the  windows.  He  was 
mortally  afraid  lest  Hicksey  should  see  him,  and 
yet  he  was  urged  by  some  blind  and  pressing  in- 
stinct thus  to  expose  himself.  From  the  house 
came  no  sound  and  he  could  see  nothing  except 
the  clear-cut  black  and  white  planes  of  its  squat 
form.  He  shook  his  fist  at  the  black  aperture  of 
the  window  and  muttered  low  curses.  Then  he 
walked  several  times  round  the  house,  keeping 
close  to  it  and  stepping  softly  on  the  sand.    H^ 


190      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

wrenched  up  a  stake  that  had  once  made  part  of 
a  fence.  Again  he  paused,  this  time  opposite  a 
side  window  of  one  of  the  bedrooms.  He  peered 
over  the  sill ;  as  he  touched  it  with  his  fingers,  his 
knuckles  rattled  against  the  woodwork.  He 
noticed  that  he  was  trembling  violently  and  that 
he  was  drenched  with  sweat.  He  drew  back  and 
knelt  down  on  the  sand,  then  lay  at  full  length 
face  downward.  He  struggled  for  breath,  as  he 
had  struggled  on  the  night  of  the  hurricane.  It 
came  in  hot,  long-drawn  gasps,  and  left  his  body 
empty  and  quivering,  shaken  with  cold.  The 
devils  within  had  him  now  helpless  and  crushed. 
He  lay  there  indifferent  to  all  things  but  the  piti- 
less cruelty  of  their  attack. 

In  at  the  open  window  there  floated  the  expect- 
ant hush  that  follows  midnight.  Alice  Desmond 
woke  with  a  start,  sheer  terror  possessed  her.  She 
was  crushed  and  struggling  under  some  intolerable 
and  suffocating  weight.  She  lay  rigid  with  ap- 
prehension and  strove  to  grasp  the  immensity  of 
her  dread.  It  sucked  away  her  breath  and 
pressed  upon  her  heart.  Feebly  her  mind  tried 
to  compass  its  bulk.  It  swelled  and  enveloped 
her.  Her  consciousness  strove  to  assert  itself,  but 
naked  fear  stretched  and  towered  beyond  its  grasp. 
She  lay  still  with  her  eyes  wide  open,  then  ardu- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   191 

ously  her  senses  took  in  the  facts  of  the  room. 
There  was  the  window,  and  there  was  the  door 
that  stood  open  into  the  doctor's  room.  It  was  lit 
up  by  moonlight.  She  herself  was  lying  there  in 
the  bed,  no  one  was  touching  her,  no  one  was 
holding  her  down.  She  was  free  to  move  if  she 
dared.  But  as  yet  she  dared  not  move,  she  could 
only  hold  her  fear  from  pressing  too  painfully 
upon  her  heart.  Sherwin's  red  face  and  beard 
was  the  chief  image  of  her  terror.  She  knew 
that  he  was  near,  somewhere  quite  close;  he 
might  almost  be  touching  her,  she  felt  so  strongly 
his  presence.  He  might  be  within  an  arm's  length 
and  yet  she  could  not  see  him,  though  she  could 
see  clearly  all  the  objects  in  the  room.  No !  she 
dared  not  call  for  Hicksey.  The  silence  was  al- 
most a  protection  which  she  might  not  break. 
Gradually  she  gained  courage  to  move  her  head 
and  peered  round.  Yes,  the  room  was  quite 
empty.  By  listening  intently  she  could  hear 
Hicksey's  easy  breathing  in  the  next  room,  and  yet 
dared  not  call.  She  imagined  that  she  could  hear 
another  sound.  Yes,  she  knew  for  certain  that 
Sherwin  was  somewhere  near.  A  wave  of  anger 
came  to  her  that  he  should  thus  dare  to  outrage  her 
slumbers.  Without  sound  she  raised  herself  in 
bed.  Then,  quickly  kicking  off  the  bed-clothes, 
she  slipped  to  the  floor.     As  she  crossed  the  room, 


192      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

the  creaking  of  the  boards  made  her  heart  jump. 
When  she  reached  the  doorway,  she  peered  cau- 
tiously through.  There  was  no  one  there  but  the 
doctor,  and  he  was  asleep.  She  walked  to  the 
head  of  his  bed  and  stood  looking  down  at  the 
sleeping  man.  Now  that  she  was  so  close  she 
hardly  liked  to  disturb  him,  but  her  dread  was 
still  on  her.  She  put  a  hand  on  his  shoulder  and 
shook  him  gently.  He  opened  his  eyes  and 
stared;  then,  recognizing  her:  *What  is  it?"  he 
asked,  and  impulsively  lifted  himself  in  his  bed. 
She  put  a  hand  on  his  mouth  and  whispered, 
"That  man!  He's  somewhere  about.  I  feel 
sure  he  is." 

"Where  is  he?  Did  he  try  to  get  into  your 
room?"  demanded  Hicksey,  who  was  not  to  be 
silenced. 

"I  don't  know." 

"Did  you  see  him  or  hear  him?" 
"No,  but  I  know  he's  somewhere  near." 
"But  if  you  didn't  see  him,  how  do  you  know?" 
"I  don't  know,  but  I  do.     I  had  a  horrible 
dream." 

Hicksey  was  puzzled.  "You're  nervous. 
Damn  the  fellow  for  upsetting  you.  You  must 
have  imagined  it  all.  He'd  know  better  than  to 
be  prowling  about  at  this  time  of  night." 

"But  I  know,  I  know;  I'm  quite  sure  of  it." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   193 

"Well,  I'll  have  a  look  round,  then  we'll  soon 
see,  and  if  he  is,  it  will  be  the  worse  for  him." 

Hicksey  jumped  out  of  bed  and  began  to  shuffle 
on  his  slippers.  She  clung  to  him.  "Be  very 
careful.  Please  be  very  careful.  I'm  sure  he's 
dangerous." 

"Oh,  nonsense.  If  I  find  him  anywhere  about, 
it's  I  who  will  be  dangerous."  He  struck  a  match 
and  lit  a  lantern,  that  he  used  for  finding  his  way 
along  the  path  to  the  hospital  when  he  had  occa- 
sion to  go  there  in  the  dark.  He  walked  towards 
the  door. 

"Hadn't  you  better  take  your  revolver?"  she 
ventured. 

He  turned  and  laughed,  then  mockingly  he 
lifted  in  a  half  caress  a  handful  of  her  hair. 
"What  is  the  matter  with  you,  Alice?  Do  you 
suppose  the  man's  a  savage?" 

"Pray  God  it  will  be  all  right! "  she  said. 

For  a  time  that  seemed  to  him  indefinite  Sher- 
win  lay  face  downward  on  the  sand,  oblivious  of 
everything  but  the  pain  of  his  emotion.  Then 
abruptly  he  became  conscious  that  there  was  move- 
ment in  the  house.  There  were  voices.  Dis- 
tinctly he  could  hear  Hicksey's  voice.  He  turned 
on  his  side  and  looked  at  the  house.  He  saw  the 
reflection  of  a  lighted  match.     Scrambling  to  his 


194      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

feet  he  went  round  to  the  front  where  there  were 
thick  bushes  behind  which  he  could  hide.  He 
heard  the  creaking  of  the  boards,  then  the  door 
opened  and  Hicksey  stepped  out  on  to  the  ver- 
andah holding  a  lighted  lantern.  Alice  Desmond 
stood  behind  him.  She  was  in  her  nightgown  and 
her  dark  hair  hung  over  her  shoulders. 

Sherwin  drew  in  his  breath  and  grasped  at  the 
stake  that  he  carried.  The  doctor  put  his  hand 
on  the  railing  of  the  steps  and  began  to  descend. 

From  out  at  sea  there  came  a  far-away  holloa. 
Then  close  following  came  another.  Both  men 
turned  to  look.  Out  in  the  harbour  they  could 
see  a  light. 

Hicksey  spoke  to  the  woman.  "Are  you  sure  it 
wasn't  old  Pomf rey  you  were  dreaming  about,  for 
that's  the  cutter  just  arrived.  I  wonder  what  he 
means  by  turning  up  this  time  of  night."  He  held 
the  lantern  up.  The  light  on  the  boat  waved  to 
and  fro,  to  show  they  had  seen  his  signal.  "It's 
just  as  well  you  did  wake  me.  He'd  find  it  diffi- 
cult to  find  the  moorings  without  a  guiding  light." 

Then  again  the  stillness  of  the  night  was  broken 
by  a  shout  from  the  boat. 

Suddenly  and  unexpectedly  Sherwin's  fever  left 
him.  The  call  from  the  sea  had  pierced  the  spell 
of  the  tropic  night.  It  was  a  message  from  the 
civilized  world  and  spoke  of  all  the  sanity  of  exist- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   195 

ence,  of  all  the  woven  veils  that  hide  the  sparks  of 
madness.  It  carried  on  its  two  notes  a  sanction 
to  all  that  complicated  and  intricate  system.  In 
the  great  world  of  men  there  still  existed  churches 
and  parliaments  and  public-houses  and  brothels, 
the  wheels  still  turned  one  upon  another.  In 
Sherwin  it  touched  some  hidden  spring  and  he 
was  once  more  conscious  that  he  was  a  civilized 
man.  Who  was  he  that  he  should  prowl  in  the 
night  with  promptings  of  rape  and  murder  in  his 
heart?  Once  more  he  was  cool  and  composed; 
there  were  still  links  between  himself  and  the 
world  he  had  left.  He  had  a  buoyant,  almost 
happy  desire  to  nm  down  to  the  beach  and  greet 
the  old  man  and  hear  from  him  the  latest  news. 
He  crept  through  the  bushes,  making  his  way  to- 
wards his  own  house.  As  he  went,  he  felt 
ashamed  of  the  sharp  throes  he  had  just  experi- 
enced. 

Hicksey  walked  round  the  house  and  peered 
behind  the  bushes.  "Well,  you  see  there's  no  one 
about;  it  was  all  your  imagination." 

"It  was  more  than  that,"  she  said.  "I  felt  him 
touching  me;  it  was  horrible." 

Hicksey  looked  at  her,  puzzled,  for  some  mo- 
ments, then  he  changed  the  subject.  "I  suppose 
Pomfrey  must  have  been  becalmed.  Anyway, 
there's  no  need  for  rne  to  see  him  till  the  mom- 


196      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

ing.  So  if  you  are  satisfied  that  no  one  is  there, 
I'm  going  back  to  bed,  and  I  advise  you  to  do  the 
same." 

Silence  settled  once  more  upon  the  island, 
broken  only  by  the  scuttling  of  the  wallabies  dis- 
turbed by  Sherwin  as  he  forced  his  way  through 
the  bushes. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

WHEN  Sherwin  neared  his  house,  he 
sent  the  stake  that  he  was  carrying 
rattling  against  the  shanty  in  which 
Coffee  slept.  The  black  turned  out,  rubbing  his 
eyes.  ''There's  the  boat  just  come  in,  Coffee,"  he 
shouted;  "you  run  down  and  help  pull  up  the 
dinghy.  Tell  Mr.  Pomfrey  I'll  be  down  in  a  min- 
ute or  two." 

He  went  inside  and  washed  and  changed  his 
shirt,  which  was  torn  in  several  places  by  the 
thorns  through  which  he  had  so  hotly  pushed. 
As  he  hurried  down  to  the  beach,  he  felt  already  a 
different  man.  He  met  Pomfrey  just  where  the 
dunes  slope  to  the  beach.  The  old  man  was 
plodding  his  way  towards  the  house.  "What 
makes  you  turn  up  at  this  time?"  he  asked. 

"You  may  well  ask  that!"  Pomfrey  snorted. 
"First  I've  had  a  head  wind,  then  it  fell  dead 
calm.  I've  been  thirty  hours  getting  across  and 
it's  not  many  more  miles  than  that.  I'm  glad 
they  had  that  light  up  at  the  house.  I  couldn't 
have  picked  up  the  moorings  without  that." 
Then  with  a  chuckle:  "Has  the  doctor  brought 
the  new  matron  across?     Ay,  I  thought  she'd  be 

197 


198      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

gone  on  him.  They  say  she's  not  a  new  hand  at 
the  game  either." 

Sherwin  laughed  boisterously.  *'Come  up  to 
the  house  and  have  a  drink.  It's  not  too  soon  be- 
fore breakfast." 

^'Ay,  I  could  do  with  a  drink."  Then  feeling 
in  his  pockets,  "I  think  I  have  a  letter  for  you. 
Yes,  here  it  is."  He  handed  Sherwin  a  fat  en- 
velope. 

When  they  had  reached  the  house  and  drinks 
were  served,  Sherwin  opened  his  letter.  For  some 
minutes  he  became  absorbed  in  what  he  read,  and 
Pomfrey  sipped  at  his  glass.  Then  in  an  ex- 
clamation Sherwin  broke  out:     "By  G ,  he's 

struck  it  at  last ! "  He  turned  to  Pomfrey  eagerly. 
"Have  you  heard  of  this  new  find  they  talk  of — 
The  Parrot  ?  It  seems  a  good  thing.  My  brother 
— I  told  you  he  was  on  the  fields — he's  pegged  out 
a  claim  close  by." 

Pomfrey  suddenly  caught  his  companion's  ex- 
citement and  leant  across  the  table.  "Then  he's 
struck  something  good.  No  mistake,  the  Parrot's 
all  right  Every  one  is  talking  about  it.  It's  the 
richest  find  they  say  that  there  has  ever  been  in 
the  colony.  Why,  only  yesterday  I  saw  in  the 
paper  that  they'd  found  two  hundred  ounces  to 
the  ton;  something  wonderful — mullock  held  to- 
gether with  gold." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   199 

Sherwin  jumped  up  from  his  chair  and  leant 
across  the  table,  flattening  out  the  letter  under 
Pomfrey's  face.  ^'Two  hundred  ounces  did  you 
say,  twenty  he  says  here.  See  here,  this  is  what 
he  says  about  The  Parrot."  He  read  out  loud: 
"  'They  found  ore  on  the  surface  giving  six  ounces 
to  the  ton,  and  at  fifty  feet  in  the  shaft  the  borings 
gave  twenty.'  Now  listen  to  this."  He  turned 
over  the  page,  following  the  lines  eagerly  with  his 
finger:  "  'I've  taken  up  three  acres  on  the  main 
ridge  about  two  hundred  yards  from  the  claim,  as 
close  as  I  could  get.  The  reef  runs  in  that  direc- 
tion.' " 

Sherwin's  face  was  burning  with  pleasure ;  both 
men  were  excited,  as  men  always  are  over  the 
discovery  of  gold.  Pomfrey  fired  questions. 
"When  did  he  write  that  ?  How  deep  did  he  say 
they  were  ?  Fifty  feet  ?  The  last  I  heard  they'd 
reached  a  hundred,  getting  richer  and  richer  all  the 
time." 

Sherwin's  elation  carried  him  beyond  himself. 
His  brain  whirled  with  dreams  of  wealth.  Of 
course  he  would  leave  the  island;  the  doctor  and 
his  woman  could  go  to  hell  for  all  he  cared.  He 
read  on  to  the  end  of  the  letter.  His  brother  told 
him  that  he  had  employed  a  man  to  help  him  sink 
a  shaft,  and  that  as  soon  as  he  found  any  metal 
he  would  let  Sherwin  know.     Then,  not  till  then, 


200      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

would  he  want  him.  In  the  meanwhile  he  would 
need  all  the  money  Sherwin  could  send.  He 
added  that  on  the  surface  he  had  found  a  few 
stones  that  showed  a  colour,  and  he  had  no  doubt, 
since  they  were  on  the  direct  line  of  the  ridge  that, 
lower  down,  there  was  good  stuff. 

Sherwin's  spirits  were  a  little  dashed  that  he 
was  not  to  leave  the  island  at  once.  But  he  de- 
cided to  give  notice  and  leave  at  the  end  of  the 
quarter.  Then,  no  doubt,  his  brother  would  have 
found  gold  and  all  would  be  well. 

The  two  men  talked  till  dawn  about  the  won- 
derful Parrot  gold  mine.  Pomfrey  told  him  there 
were  companies  forming  in  the  capitals  of  the  dif- 
ferent states,  and  how  they  were  taking  up  land 
all  round  the  mine,  and  that  even  a  London  com- 
pany was  involved.  "It's  the  richest  thing  the 
colony  has  ever  struck,"  he  repeated.  "If  your 
brother  is  on  the  right  line  then  you're  a  rich  man. 
No  need  any  longer  to  live  on  in  a  place  like  this." 

They  drank  success  to  The  Parrot  and  to  Sher- 
win's claim ;  then,  as  the  day  dawned,  the  old  man 
went  back  to  his  boat. 

When  Sherwin  was  alone  his  excitement  would 
not  let  him  sit  still.  He  walked  up  and  down  the 
room  talking  to  himself.  The  experiences  of  last 
night  were  very  far  removed,  and  now  that  the  sun 
was  rising  he  could  hardly  believe  in  the  existence 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   201 

of  all  that  misery.  As  he  walked  up  and  down, 
he  made  plans  for  his  future  life.  It  would  be  so 
dazzling  as  to  be  well  worth  these  months  of  isola- 
tion. 

He  called  to  Coffee  to  come  and  lay  the  table. 
The  black's  enigmatic  and  sad  face  struck  him  as 
droll,  he  had  never  before  seen  how  droll  it  was. 
His  spirits  were  so  high  that  he  couldn't  help 
knocking  Coffee  about  a  little  in  a  friendly  way. 
He  dug  him  in  the  ribs.  *'Get  on,  you  old  image, 
quick  with  breakfast."  He  smacked  his  black, 
shining  shoulders,  and  shook  him  and  tripped 
him  up,  and  finally  sent  him  spinning  out  of  the 
door  with  orders  to  bring  bacon  enough  for  two. 
Then  he  allowed  Coffee  to  sit  down  on  the  floor 
and  eat  his  meal  in  his  presence,  a  thing  he  did 
not  often  allow. 

After  breakfast  he  wrote  to  his  brother,  and  took 
out  from  his  cash-box  forty  pounds  in  notes  for 
current  expenses.  It  was  good  to  handle  even 
that  little  worth  of  money.  Money — that  was  the 
stuff  to  bring  a  man  back  to  his  senses.  Why, 
it  was  the  blood  of  civilization;  and,  if  their  claim 
was  as  good  as  The  Parrot,  and  there  was  no 
reason  why  it  shouldn't  be,  then  they  ought  easily 
to  make  a  hundred  thousand.  His  imagination 
raced  ahead  into  the  future,  playing  with  extrava- 
gant fancies. 


202      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

It  was  while  he  was  thus  occupied  that  Hicksey 
walked  across  the  verandah  and  knocked  at  his 
door.  Sherwin  saw  in  an  instant  that  there  might 
be  trouble,  but  this  morning  he  was  not  in  the  least 
apprehensive.  He  had  no  fear  of  the  other  man ; 
he  had  suddenly  been  raised  above  that. 

"Good  morning,  doctor,"  he  greeted  Hicksey  as 
he  entered.  "I've  had  some  news  by  the  boat. 
Pomfrey  brings  a  letter  from  my  brother,  that 
says  he's  taken  up  a  claim  on  the  fields  and  wants 
me  to  join  him.  I  shan't  be  sorry  to  leave  this 
place;  I've  had  enough  of  it,  so  I  shall  clear  off 
at  the  end  of  the  month,  which  makes  the  end  of 
the  quarter." 

Hicksey  was  a  little  taken  back  at  this  develop- 
ment. In  face  of  this  information,  he  found  it 
difficult  to  be  as  angry  as  he  had  meant  to  be. 
"I'm  glad  to  hear  you're  going,  that  makes  things 
all  the  easier.  But  I'll  tell  you  what  I  came  here 
to  tell  you,  that  if  you  bother  the  matron  again  in 
any  way  it  will  be  the  worse  for  you.  She  tells 
me  you  were  up  to  some  devilment  yesterday. 
You  must  stop  it.     Do  you  understand?" 

Sherwin  turned  scarlet.  "There's  no  need  to 
talk  like  that,  Dr.  Hicksey;  I  never  meant  any 
harm  by  the  lady."  Then  he  finished  rather 
lamely:  "I'm  sure  the  lady  knows  I  didn't  mean 
any  harm."     He  was  a  little  ashamed  of  himself 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   203 

of  seeming  so  cowed,  but  it  didn't  really  matter 
what  he  said.  The  whole  thing  was  now  so 
utterly  unimportant — why  in  a  month's  time,  he'd 
be  in  a  position  to  buy  the  islands  and  the  hospitals 
too,  not  to  mention  any  woman  his  eye  might 
fancy.  He  went  on:  *'I'm  sorry  if  I  gave  any 
offence;  none  was  meant;  and  now  that  I'm  leav- 
ing the  lady  needn't  be  afraid." 

Now  in  his  turn  Hicksey  was  a  little  uncomfort- 
able; he  felt  as  if  he  might  have  made  too  much 
of  a  trifle.  After  all  he  didn't  know  what  had 
happened,  it  might  have  been  the  merest  nothing. 
Now  that  he  had  said  what  he  had  come  to  say, 
he  went  on  to  speak  of  other  things  and  listened 
in  his  aloof  boyish  way  to  an  account  of  Pomf  rey's 
late  arrival,  and  even  questioned  Sherwin  about 
his  letter  from  the  gold  fields.  He  was  now  rather 
inclined  to  believe  that  Nurse  Desmond  might 
have  exaggerated  the  whole  of  yesterday's  affair. 
He  reflected  that  one  never  could  tell  with  women 
what  they  would  imagine,  and  remembered  what 
a  fuss  she  had  made  in  the  night  from  sheer 
imaginative  nervousness.  He  even  felt  a  little 
sorry  that  he  had  spoken  so  sharply  to  Sherwin, 
tried  to  make  up  for  it  by  unbending  a  little  and 
asked  questions  about  his  mine.  He  felt  that  the 
man  had  come  with  a  jump  nearer  to  him,  that  he 
was  clothed  in  new  possibilities,  might  very  possi- 


204      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

bly  make  a  fortune,  and  after  all  he  was  not  so 
bad  a  fellow  in  spite  of  his  sulky  manner. 

As  Hicksey  walked  back  towards  his  house 
Sherwin  muttered  after  him  all  the  curses  he  could 
lay  tongue  to.  If  ever  he  got  his  chance  he'd  get 
back  on  him  for  talking  like  that. 

At  the  doctor's  house  Nurse  Desmond  was  wait- 
ing anxiously  for  Hicksey's  return.  She  ran  out 
to  meet  him  and  was  so  eager  to  hear  his  news 
that  she  did  not  notice  the  look  of  annoyance  on 
his  face. 

"What  did  you  say  to  him?  Have  you  dis- 
missed him?"  she  queried. 

*'No,  he's  dismissed  himself.  He  got  a  letter — 
Pomfrey  brought  it  over — that  tells  him  his 
brother  has  found  gold,  and  he's  going  at  the  end 
of  the  month.  There's  been  some  big  find,  and 
his  brother's  pegged  out  a  claim  close  by.  I 
wouldn't  be  surprised  to  hear  that  they  had  got  on 
to  a  good  thing." 

She  was  silent  for  a  moment,  then  she  said: 
''The  beast,  I'm  glad  he's  going;  I  hope  he  doesn't 
find  any  gold  though." 

Hicksey  couldn't  tell  why,  but  this  remark  an- 
noyed him  more  than  he  would  have  been  willing 
to  admit. 

"Why  do  you  say  that?" 

"Oh,  I  don't  know.     I  hate  him." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   205 

"Well,  there's  no  occasion  for  you  to  see  him 
again,"  he  said,  and  felt  a  sudden  desire  to  get 
away  by  himself. 

She  caught  at  his  hand.  "Tell  me  all  he  said," 
she  demanded. 

"Oh!  there  wasn't  much  to  say;  he  said  he  was 
sorry  and  never  meant  any  offence." 

"Did  you  make  him  promise  that  he  would 
never  come  near  me  again?"  She  held  both  his 
hands  now  and  stood  close  to  him.  He  felt  a 
definite  repugnance  at  her  eagerness,  and  an- 
swered dryly  as  he  freed  his  hands,  "He  won't 
bother  you  any  more,  I'm  quite  sure  of  that." 
Then  he  turned  from  her  and  walked  towards  the 
house. 

She  followed  and  caught  at  his  arm.  "What's 
the  matter  with  you;  are  you  cross?" 

Again  he  constrained  himself  to  hide  his  an- 
noyance. "No,  I'm  a  bit  tired;  I  want  to  be  by 
myself." 

Her  heart  leapt  in  fear  and  apprehension.  Was 
he  tired  of  her?  Did  he  love  her  no  longer? 
Would  she  be  unable  to  hold  him?  If  she  could 
not,  how  then  would  she  be  able  to  live?  A  sense 
of  her  utter  helplessness  was  sharply  defined. 
Was  she  to  be  left  clinging  to  dreams  that  faded. 
To  what  then  would  she  fall?  She  shrank  from 
the  picture  of  her  own  loneliness.     All  the  conven- 


2o6      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

tions  by  which  a  woman  lives,  which  exist  for  her 
support  and  comfort,  she  had  defied  and  cast 
aside,  and  now  felt  that  in  the  great  social  order  of 
things  there  was  for  her  no  place.  This  one  man 
was  all  that  she  had  left,  and  if  she  could  hold 
him  she  was  well  content  to  have  lost  all  else. 
But  if  he  now  turned  away,  she  would  be  empty 
and  hopeless  indeed.  Around  her  was  the  indif- 
ferent and  almost  hostile  aspect  of  a  wind-swept 
and  uncultivated  island,  and  there  still  moved  on 
the  surface  of  her  consciousness  the  image  of  that 
red  face  and  beard,  which  stood  as  symbol  of  all 
the  untamed  and  savage  instincts  of  the  race.  On 
the  other  island,  for  which  she  now  longed  as  for  a 
sanctuary,  there  were  the  two  women  who  waited 
on  her  smallest  actions  with  critical  eyes.  If 
Hicksey  were  to  turn  from  her,  where  then  indeed 
could  she  find  a  place?  To  what  could  she  then 
hold  ?  At  the  thought  of  this  great  emptiness,  life 
seemed  doubly  cruel  and  terrible;  but  with  his 
love  and  help  she  could  forget  all  else,  shut  out 
the  fears  and  terrors,  perhaps  forget  that  they 
existed — but  alone!  She  could  not  dwell  on  the 
fearfulness  of  that  thought.  For  a  moment  she 
held  his  hand  and  gently  caressed  it,  then  let  it 
drop  and  turned  towards  the  house.  She  knew 
that  he  had  looked  at  her  in  surprise  and  then  had 
walked  away  towards  the  hospital, 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   207 

When  she  reached  her  room  she  shut  and  locked 
her  door,  and  then  sat  down  in  dejection  and 
looked  aimlessly  out  of  the  window.  Before  her 
stretched  the  wide  expanse  of  the  sea,  and  in  the 
near  foreground  she  could  see  the  grasses  bending 
to  the  wind.  Out  in  the  harbour  the  boat  was 
moored,  and  she  could  see  the  figure  of  Tony  sit- 
ting motionless  looking  into  the  water.  Never 
in  her  life  had  she  felt  so  lonely.  She  looked 
away  and  regarded  the  few  pieces  of  furniture  in 
the  mean  small  room.  Then  she  looked  at  her 
own  hands,  and  at  the  loose  cuffs  of  silk  about  her 
wrists.  She  followed  the  course  of  the  veins  in 
her  arm,  and  felt  an  overwhelming  pity  for  her 
own  body.  What  if  he  were  to  cease  loving  her; 
how  wasted  all  her  life  would  seem.  She  went  to 
the  glass  and  looked  at  herself.  Her  own  eyes 
seemed  strange  and  troubled.  Letting  down  her 
hair  she  pulled  it  in  two  great  waves  over  her 
shoulders.  Was  this  all  there  was  of  her,  all 
there  was  to  offer?  She  watched  the  tears  gather 
in  her  eyes  and  drop  from  her  lashes.  In  the  dis- 
tance she  could  hear  the  waves  breaking  on  the 
shore;  they  and  all  the  other  forces  of  the  world 
were  utterly  indifferent  to  her  fate.  But  oh,  she 
loved  him,  she  loved  him,  needed  him  desperately. 
She  would  never  let  him  go.  There  was  nothing 
he  might  not  do  to  her,  but  he  must  love  her  in 


2o8      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

return.  Then  came  an  intense  desire  to  be  near 
him,  to  follow  all  his  actions,  to  watch  the  come 
and  go  of  his  thoughts.  She  would  go  and  work 
for  him,  make  herself  ever  so  useful.  She  went 
to  the  glass  and  began  to  coil  up  her  hair  with  the 
idea  of  going  to  help  him  at  his  work,  but  before 
she  had  it  placed  and  pinned  in  position  her  heart 
failed  her.  She  remembered  how  yesterday  he 
had  seemed  so  indifferent  as  she  had  sat  beside 
him  doing  as  he  had  directed.  She  remembered 
too  how  quick  the  natives  were  to  note  any  passing 
mood  or  faint  expression,  and  she  felt  she  could 
not  meet  their  scrutiny.  For  a  moment  she  stood 
in  indecision;  then  came  the  conviction  that  she 
was  not  strong  enough  for  this  battle.  With  ad- 
mission of  this  defeat,  her  misery  and  loneliness 
became  poignant.  She  flung  herself  on  the  bed 
and  lay  sobbing,  hopelessly  unable  to  restrain  or 
to  control  the  completeness  of  her  despair. 

For  how  long  she  lay  there  with  her  face 
amongst  the  pillows  she  did  not  know,  but  when 
the  first  onset  of  her  grief  had  passed  she  turned 
and  watched  vacantly  the  flies  spin  tangles  in  the 
air.  For  a  time  she  would  try  to  follow  one  in- 
dividually; it  would  approach  and  retreat  from 
the  other,  wending  its  way  amongst  them.  Of  a 
sudden  it  would  become  madly  tangled  with  some 
other,  and  she  would  not  be  quite  sure  which  was 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   209 

the  one  she  was  at  first  following.  Then  she 
would  close  her  eyes,  indifferent  to  their  feeble  and 
senseless  activities.  At  midday  the  sun's  rays 
struck  down  upon  the  roof,  making  the  room  in- 
tolerably hot.  The  resin  oozed  from  the  wooden 
walls  and  uprights,  and  the  air  was  permeated 
with  its  strong  scent.  She  lay  quite  still,  only 
occasionally  raising  her  hand  to  brush  away  the 
flies  that  settled  on  her  face  and  arms.  Then  fol- 
lowed the  long  hours  of  the  afternoon  that  slowly 
dragged  themselves  away.  Vaguely  she  hoped 
that  he  would  come.  Was  he  so  utterly  careless 
of  her?  The  sunlight  slanted  in  at  the  window 
and  crept  across  the  floor,  but  she  had  not  the 
energy  to  get  up  and  pull  down  the  blind.  When 
the  glare  fell  upon  the  bed  she  only  moved  slightly 
so  that  it  should  not  fall  directly  on  her  face.  It 
must  be  late  afternoon  now,  and  yet  he  had  not 
come.  Later,  she  heard  Coffee  come  into  the  back 
room.  She  listened  with  half-awakened  interest 
to  his  movements  as  he  prepared  the  evening  meal. 
Then  she  lay  with  eyes  closed  waiting  for  the  doc- 
tor's return;  surely  he  must  come  now.  At  last 
she  heard  his  footsteps.  He  mounted  the  steps, 
then  crossed  the  verandah.  He  came  to  the  door ; 
she  thought  he  paused  for  a  moment,  then  he 
passed  by  and  went  into  the  little  room  at  the  back. 
She  listened  intently  to  all  his  movements.     What 


210      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

was  he  going  to  do?  For  some  minutes  she  heard 
him  move  things  about,  then  she  heard  the  uneasy 
clicking  of  the  micrometer.  She  knew  that  he 
had  gone  back  to  his  work.  Was  he  then  utterly 
tired  of  her?  She  remembered  with  bitterness 
that  this  was  the  usual  time  for  their  walk  to- 
gether. Still  she  lay  still  and  made  no  movement. 
He  seemed  to  be  taking  an  intolerable  time ;  would 
he  never  stop  that  clicking?  The  sun  sank  into 
the  sea  and  the  light  faded;  she  had  been  alone 
and  miserable  all  day,  and  there  was  no  one  to 
care.  Then  at  last  he  came  to  the  door.  Finding 
it  locked  he  rattled  at  the  handle.  The  spell  of 
her  lassitude  was  at  once  broken.  She  leapt  up 
and  went  to  open  it ;  as  she  did  so  her  hair,  which 
was  but  loosely  pinned,  fell  in  disarray  about  her 
shoulders.     She  unlocked  the  door. 

*'Why,  what  is  the  matter  with  you?  Are  you 
ill?"  he  said. 

She  could  not  find  words  to  answer,  but  shook 
her  head  with  a  slight  shudder. 

He  came  farther  into  the  room.  "How  fright- 
fully hot  it  is  in  here !  Why,  you Ve  never  pulled 
.down  the  blind!" 

Still  she  made  no  answer.  He  looked  at  her, 
puzzled,  then  there  suddenly  came  over  him  an 
unexpected  appreciation  of  her  forlorn  beauty. 
His  eyes  must  have  shown  his  admiration.     When 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   211 

she  spoke  it  was  in  an  every-day  and  almost  dry 
tone.  "Where  have  you  been  all  day?  Why 
didn't  you  come  earlier?" 

"Oh,  I've  been  working."  He  seemed  to  throw 
the  words  behind  him.  "But  tell  me,  have  you 
wanted  me?" 

She  made  no  answer,  but  looked  up  at  him  with 
eyes  wet  with  tears.  In  a  sudden  gust  of  passion 
he  snatched  her  to  him. 

She  could  afford  for  a  moment  to  take  in  her 
triumph,  yet  with  an  almost  pleading  voice  she 
asked:     "What,  do  you  still  love  me?" 

For  answer  he  held  her  the  closer.  She  lay  un- 
resisting in  his  arms,  while  he  kissed  her  hot  lips. 


CHAPTER  XV 

WHEN  Dr.  Hicksey  brought  his  boat 
against  the  landing  rocks  at  Fenton 
Island,  he  found  no  one  there  to  meet 
him.  This  was  unusual,  as  formerly  James  had 
come  down  to  help  secure  the  boat.  He  made  no 
remark  on  this  head  to  Nurse  Desmond,  but  it  was 
with  a  feeling  of  irritation  and  disappointment 
that  he  walked  towards  the  hospital.  Although 
he  very  well  knew  that  James  and  the  two  nurses 
looked  with  disapproval  upon  his  actions,  he  had 
not  up  to  the  present  received  any  open  censure, 
but  now  the  fact  that  they  thus  failed  to  take  any 
notice  of  his  arrival  could  bear  no  other  than  an 
unfriendly  interpretation.  His  first  prompting 
was  to  reprove  James  for  what  might  well  be 
considered  an  omission  of  part  of  his  duty,  but  on 
second  thoughts  he  decided  to  make  no  mention 
of  the  incident. 

On  arrival  at  the  hospital  he  found  James  and 
the  two  nurses  at  work  in  the  central  ward. 
Everything  seemed  to  be  in  good  order,  different 
indeed  from  the  days  of  Dr.  Hubbard,  and  work- 

21:9 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   213 

ing  with  the  regularity  that  he  himself  had  intro- 
duced. During  the  two  weeks  that  he  had  been 
away  he  had  of  necessity  lost  touch  with  the  cases 
left  on  Fenton  Island,  and  he  would  have  to  ask 
many  questions  before  he  could  be  again  master 
of  the  situation.  As  he  now  stood  talking  to 
James  he  had  an  unwelcome  but  definite  feeling 
that  he  might  almost  be  an  outsider,  that  the  place 
could  get  on  very  smoothly  and  well  without  his 
presence.  The  nurses,  who  were  working  at  the 
other  end  of  the  ward,  had  not  even  taken  the 
trouble  to  greet  him,  and  he  knew  very  well  that 
they  were  sorry  that  he  and  Nurse  Desmond  had 
returned  to  take  over  the  charge  of  affairs.  He 
felt  that  since  his  absence  with  the  matron  his 
position  had  become  considerably  weaker.  The 
two  women  no  doubt  hated  him  and  could  make 
life  very  difficult.  They  had  influenced  James, 
who  during  his  absence  had  enjoyed  his  first  taste 
of  authority.  And  now,  as  Hicksey  looked  along 
the  rows  of  neatly  kept  beds,  he  felt  that  the  young 
man  beside  him  was  only  waiting  to  step  in  and 
take  his  position.  His  work,  that  once  he  had  so 
loved  and  which  had  been  so  full  of  brilliant  pos- 
sibilities, now  stretched  before  him,  a  rough  and 
arduous  path.  He  would  find  no  pleasure  in  its 
dull  routine,  but  only  an  escape  from  an  uneasy 
conscience  and  self-contempt.     His  thought  of 


214      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

strongest  support  was  that  always  he  had  been  a 
hard  worker.  By  work  he  could  once  more  gain 
his  own  approval,  and  then  be  in  a  position  to 
demand  respect  from  the  others. 

After  Hicksey  had  talked  with  James  for  some 
time  over  the  general  routine,  he  took  him  to  his 
own  work-room,  and  there  told  him  that  he  was 
going  on  with  the  experiments  on  which  he  had 
formerly  been  engaged.  He  asked  James  for  his 
co-operation  and  explained  the  general  scheme  of 
his  work. 

In  spite  of  the  influence  of  the  nurses,  James 
had  always  felt  an  admiration  and  liking  for  the 
doctor,  and  now  that  he  once  more  showed  a  spark 
of  his  old  enthusiasm,  James  could  not  hold  back. 
After  all  it  was  easy  to  make  excuses  for  the  doc- 
tor, and  he  soon  dropped  his  manner  of  formal 
politeness  and  listened  with  interest  to  what  Hick- 
sey said.  Hicksey,  for  his  part,  was  delighted 
to  be  once  more  talking  to  a  man  of  his  own  class 
and  education,  and  one  who  was  genuinely  inter- 
ested in  his  work.  He  would  have  been  willing 
now  to  admit  that  he  had  conducted  very  foolishly 
the  whole  affair  with  Alice  Desmond.  He  should 
never  have  let  her  interfere  with  his  work.  A 
woman  was  never  worth  a  sacrifice  of  that  sort. 
He  should  have  kept  her  in  a  more  subordinate 
position,  and  never  expected  her  to  be  his  equal 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   215 

and  to  share  his  thoughts.  It  was  no  doubt  be- 
cause he  had  treated  her  too  generously  that  there 
had  sprung  up  such  situations  between  them  as 
had  occurred  on  Kanna  Island.  He  determined 
that  for  the  future  he  would  put  his  work  first,  and 
yet,  or  rather  by  this  means,  establish  a  better 
relation  with  his  mistress. 

And  now  once  more  the  customary  routine  of 
life  went  forward  on  Fenton  Island,  and  the  days 
followed  one  another  with  their  repetition  of  small 
duties;  and  human  nature,  which  can,  after  all, 
exist  and  flourish  after  much  harassment  and 
bruising,  adapted  itself  to  the  simplest,  which  was 
at  the  same  time  the  inevitable  mode  of  existence. 

The  two  men,  in  spite  of  the  antagonism  that 
existed  between  their  women  folk,  held  together 
with  a  kind  of  half-apologetic  yet  wholly  grateful 
comradeship.  Each  -in  the  companionship  of  the 
other  found  signs  and  constant  reminders  of  the 
civilization  that  he  had  left.  They  understood 
each  other's  aspirations  and  failures  as  no  woman 
could  understand.  They  were  like  two  friends 
watching  each  other  resist  with  varying  success  the 
assaults  of  a  common  enemy,  an  enemy  that  they 
felt  might  separate  them  and  even  perhaps  bring 
them  to  destroy  one  another.  An  irritation  grew 
out  of  their  loneliness  and  their  enforced  comrade- 
ship.    The  monotony  of  the  days  pressed  upon 


2i6      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

their  spirits,  making  them  taciturn  and  moody, 
and  the  glare  of  the  sun  on  the  white,  arid  sand- 
dunes  made  their  eyes  sore  and  their  brains  tired. 
But  it  was  the  women  who  were  the  most  unhappy 
and  discontented;  and  in  the  days  of  heat  and 
tedium  there  grew  up  among  them  hate,  jealousy, 
and  envy ;  and  greater  than  all  these  a  passionate 
longing  to  centre  all  their  forces  on  some  concrete 
and  tangible  reality  and  find  with  this  help  an  un- 
assailable place  in  the  world  that  they  had  left. 

Nurse  Desmond  was  the  most  to  be  pitied ;  she 
stood  more  alone  than  either  of  the  others,  who 
would  never  forgive  her  for  not  conforming  to  the 
standard  by  which  they  chose  to  live.  Nurse  Hil- 
ton made  the  most  of  the  fact  that  she  now  was 
formally  engaged  to  James.  She  talked  about  go- 
ing over  to  Kaimera  in  a  few  months  to  get  mar- 
ried. Her  thoughts  dwelt  much  on  this  subject, 
and  it  gave  her  a  dignity  in  her  own  eyes  to  feel 
that  she  would  then  be  once  more  in  touch  with 
civilization  and  with  civilized  institutions.  Nurse 
Toms  maintained  a  rigid  propriety  which  was  sup- 
ported by  a  rather  bitter  tongue.  As  for  the  doc- 
tor's conduct,  she  could  find  no  words  to  express 
her  disapproval,  and  she  expressed  an  opinion 
that  Nurse  Hilton  and  James  should  waste  no 
time  before  getting  legally  and  safely  married. 
From  neither  of  these  women  could  Alice  Des- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   217 

mond  look  for  any  support  or  sympathy.  And 
now  she  knew  that  her  power  over  Hicksey  was 
weakening.  He  no  longer  allowed  his  life  to  cen- 
tre upon  her,  but  had  again  seriously  taken  to  his 
work.  Now  most  of  his  time,  that  was  not  given 
to  the  hospital,  he  spent  in  his  room  working  at 
his  own  research.  Her  days  passed  in  almost 
complete  loneliness,  for  only  at  meal-times  and 
late  in  the  evening  did  she  see  the  doctor  alone. 

These  short  intervals  she  would  look  forward  to 
during  the  long  hours  of  work,  but  often  they 
were  quickly  hurried  over,  and  the  doctor  w^as  too 
much  occupied  with  his  own  work  to  notice  her 
desperate  and  ever-increasing  unhappiness.  And 
yet  even  now  there  were  short  respites,  times  when 
he  came  to  her  after  his.  work  was  over,  and  they 
would  walk  together  along  the  sands.  Then  she 
would  try  to  believe  that  he  still  loved  her,  but 
she  really  knew  that  he  had  lost  any  touch  of  in- 
dividual appreciation,  and  that  most  of  his  day  he 
put  her  from  his  thoughts  as  something  almost 
shameful  and  degrading.  Two  emotions  in  direct 
antagonism  to  one  another  dominated  her  life: 
one  that  the  existence  which  she  led  was  intoler- 
able and  could  not  last,  and  the  other,  that  she 
could  never,  never  give  him  up.  How  to  reconcile 
these  two  she  could  not  think,  but  vaguely  believed 
that  something  must  happen  or  she  would  go  mad. 


2i8      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

What  did  actually  happen  was  far  different 
from  anything  she  had  ever  anticipated.  She 
gained  a  victory,  but  her  position  became  even 
worse  than  it  was  before. 

After  the  doctor  had  finished  his  work  at  the 
hospital,  he  usually  returned  to  his  room,  where 
he  worked  till  supper.  It  was  during  this  evening 
period  that  Nurse  Desmond  most  felt  her  isolation, 
for  it  was  at  these  times  that  they  used  to  walk  to- 
gether along  the  cliffs  or  down  on  to  the  beaches. 
Her  work  finished,  she  had  nothing  to  do  and  no 
one  to  speak  to.  To  pass  the  time,  she  would 
sometimes  walk  out  on  to  the  beach  by  herself,  but 
occasionally  she  would  stay  in  the  wards  and  talk 
to  the  native  patients.  She  did  not  like  the  na- 
tives, had,  in  fact,  a  repugnance  for  them,  and  yet 
to  talk  to  them  gave  her  a  forlorn  consolation. 
There  was,  too,  something  about  their  resignation 
that  touched  her.  They  seemed  to  have  dropped 
so  far  away  from  their  true  and  savage  lives,  and 
were  without  any  hope  of  ever  renewing  them, 
content  to  snatch  what  small  pleasure  the  time 
could  offer. 

One  evening  while  she  was  thus  sitting  talking 
to  one  of  the  black  gins,  the  other  two  nurses  hap- 
pened to  pass  through  the  ward.  Before  going  out 
they  stopped  by  the  door  and  looked  back  and 
then  spoke  to  one  another.     In  a  hot  instant  of 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   219 

shame  Alice  Desmond  got  a  picture  of  the  half- 
lighted  ward,  with  its  rows  of  beds  in  which  lay 
black  diseased  savages,  and  of  herself  sitting  there 
deserted  in  the  twilight,  sneered  at  and  perhaps 
pitied  by  the  other  white  women.  At  that  pic- 
ture, the  mortification  and  pain  of  the  last  days 
crushed  her  with  their  accumulated  weight.  The 
door  closed  on  the  two  women.  No  doubt  they 
were  now  laughing  at  her  forlorn  state.  She  pic- 
tured the  look  upon  their  faces,  one  that  she  had 
often  seen,  a  look  that  sometimes  comes  when  we 
know  another  to  be  in  danger  or  suffering  while 
we  ourselves  are  safe.  It  has  in  it  the  cruelty  of 
the  many  against. the  few;  half  exultation  at  an- 
other's pain,  and  half  gratification  at  one's  own 
escape.  Then  in  a.  rush  came  her  pride  to  save 
her  from  tears ;  it  kindled  to  fierce-  anger.  It  was 
shameful  that  he  should  desert  her  thus.  How 
she  hated,  his  work  that  stole  him.  from  her. 

In  his  room  she  found  him  bent  over  a  micro- 
scope. As  she  entered  she  had  no  fixed  plan,  but 
she  contained,  grasping  and  choking  for  expres- 
sion, all  her  accumulated  jealousy  against  his 
work. 

She  came  close  to  him,  then  in  a  voice  that  was 
so  quiet  and  ordinary  that  she  was  startled  at  it, 
she  asked:  "What  are  you  doing?"  As  she  saw 
him  turn  and  in  his  cool,  deliberate  way  prepare 


220      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

to  answer  her  question,  her  anger  could  no  longer 
be  contained.  As  if  they  were  stones,  she  flung 
her  questions  at  him,  each  more  passionately  ac- 
cusing than  the  last.  At  each  moment  becoming 
more  conscious  of  her  injury  and  more  indignant. 
"Why  do  you  never  come  out  with  me  now? 
Have  you  quite  forgotten  that  I  exist?  Am  I  ex- 
pected to  live  with  the  black  women  and  never  be 
spoken  to?  How  do  you  expect  me  to  spend  my 
day?  Have  you  no  feeling  for  any  one  in  the 
world  but  yourself?  You've  never  loved  me, 
you've  just  played  with  me,  and  now  you  want  to 
throw  me  away.  You  cold  egoist,  you  make  your 
work  an  excuse  for  your  egoism."  She  burst  into 
high-pitched,  lorig-drawn  sobs. 

Hicksey's  chief  feelings  were  of  surprise  and 
disgust  for  such  a  display  of  uncontrolled  emo- 
tion. Women,  he  thought,  should  not  live  in  hot 
countries,  it  made  them  too  hysterical.  "For 
God's  sake,"  he  said,  "don't  make  that  noise,  the 
others  will  hear,  and  they'll  think  I'm  murdering 
you." 

She  caught  her  breath  and  held  down  the  sobs 
while  she  raved  at  him  in  a  strained  raucous 
voice.  "Do  you  think  I  care  what  they  think? 
What  do  they  think?  That  I  interrupt  your 
work?"  and  she  laughed.  At  this  moment  she 
was  to  him  in  her  uncontrolled  self-exposure  more 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   221 

ugly  than  anything  that  he  had  ever  seen,  and  yet 
he  was  daunted  by  the  savage  power  of  her  shame- 
lessness.  There  was  something  elemental,  either 
more  or  less  than  human,  in  her  passion.  "I  hate 
your  work,"  she  screamed. 

He  had  come  towards  her,  but  she  dodged  away. 
Then  with  a  sudden  flash  of  resolve  she  snatched 
up  his  microscope  and  dashed  it  to  the  ground. 

"Damn  you!"  he  shouted,  and  ran  at  her. 

She  swept  the  table  clean  of  his  instruments  and 
preparations.  "Don't  touch  me,  don't  dare  to 
touch  me!" 

As  he  ran  at  her,  she  struck  at  him,  wounding 
him  on  the  forehead  with  a  heavy  ruler  that  she 
had  snatched  up.  Her  thin  garments  tore  in  his 
hands.  Silent  and  panting  they  struggled:  the 
woman  in  her  abandonment  fierce  to  destroy 
everything,  her  self  and  all  that  she  loved,  no 
matter  so  long  as  she  could  find  some  outlet  for 
her  pain,  something  concrete  on  which  to  wreak 
her  revenge:  the  man  instinctive  to  restrain  this 
savage  unknown  enemy  that  threatened  to  destroy 
the  sure  conventions  by  which  men  live.  He  could 
no  longer  wince  with  repugnance,  but  must  now 
struggle  with  and  subdue  this  elemental  and  re- 
fractory force.  At  length  he  managed  to  secure 
her  wrists.  Then,  as  they  struggled  wildly  face 
to  face,  she  trod  back  on-  her  skirt  and  stumbled ; 


222      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

they  both  fell  to  the  ground.  Here  he  could  hold 
her  powerless  and  gain  a  little  breath. 

The  room  was  a  tumbled  mass  of  debris.  On 
looking  round  at  it,  Hicksey  could  see  that  the 
result  of  the  greater  part  of  his  work  for  the  last 
year  was  there  destroyed.  It  was  work,  which  he 
knew,  with  sudden  conviction,  that  he  would  never 
have  the  energy  to  accomplish  again.  And  in  his 
hands,  under  his  control  and  powerless,  was  the 
woman  who  had  worked  such  devastation  in  his 
life.  He  was  filled  with  hatred.  She  was  wild, 
emotional,  not  to  be  relied  on,  fierce  to  do  evil :  at 
that  moment  he  feared  her,  and  knew  that  he 
could  never  understand  the  thought  that  passed 
behind  her  eyes. 

After  her  first  fierce  efforts  to  rise,  she  had  lain 
still  and  watched  him  with  a  puzzling  look  of  in- 
difference; it  seemed  to  him  that  the  life  in  her 
had  suddenly  shrunk  to  a  small  spark,  or  had 
perhaps  left  her  body  empty,  and  was  now  living 
in  some  far-distant  place  and  period.  Then,  as 
masterfully  indignant  he  strove  to  reach  even  to 
the  fringe  of  her  thought,  he  saw  in  her  eyes,  life 
untamed,  untameable  and  evasive.  All  men  at  all 
times  had  feared  to  see  that  sight.  All  civiliza- 
tions had  been  built  up  to  hide  from  them  that 
which  they  least  wanted  to  see.  What  was  his 
work  worth  or  the  work  of  other  men  in  the  light 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   223 

of  that  glimpse  of  unscreened  and  desperate  real- 
ity? He  was  as  a  little  child  naked  and  alone. 
He  had  lived  in  a  world  of  theories  and  of  fancies, 
had  been  impressed  by  the  truth  of  man's  knowl- 
edge and  power,  mere  figments  of  man's  folly  to 
hide  his  nakedness.  He  had  dreamt  that  he  had 
lived  in  a  world  of  men,  moving  harmoniously  to 
some  definite  end,  had  stretched  forth  his  hands 
toward  life,  and  at  the  first  contact  found  himself 
a  mere  atom  floating  on  the  surface  of  an  opaque 
and  inscrutable  wave  that  moved  with  the  pulse 
of  madness  and  covered,  with  its  smooth  surface, 
figures  of  despair  and  fear. 

The  heat  and  indignation  of  the  struggle  died 
away  and  left  in  its  place  a  feeling  of  great  loneli- 
ness. Over  her  face  had  come  a  curiously  calm, 
and  untroubled  look.  She  spoke  to  him  quite 
quietly.  *' Don't  hold  my  wrist  so  tight,  you're 
hurting  me." 

He  relaxed  his  grip,  but  still  held  her,  wonder- 
ing whether  she  would  struggle  again.  He  lifted 
one  of  her  hands  and  let  it  fall.  It  fell  back 
limply  and  lay  at  her  side. 

Where  he  had  gripped  her  wrist  he  saw  that  the 
skin  was  chafed  and  broken  and  the  flesh  swelled 
and  discoloured.  He  experienced  a  singular, 
half-conscious  pity  that  her  body  should  thus  be 
wounded.     In  all  that  vision  of  desolation  and 


224      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

emptiness  that  had  been  flashed  upon  his  mind 
there  was  at  least  this  woman  who  cared  for  and 
loved  him.  He  thought  of  her  body  as  something 
apart  from  the  fierce  powers  that  wrecked  her. 
Her  body  was  her  true  self,  and  for  that,  as  he  now 
looked  at  it,  bleeding  and  disarrayed,  he  had  a 
sudden  pity.  He  lifted  her  arm  and  held  the 
bruifeed  wrist  between  finger  and  thumb.  As  if 
diagnosing  some  patient,  he  deliberately  pinched 
the  place.     "Does  that  hurt?"  he  asked. 

Into  her  eyes  came  back  a  sudden  interest.  Her 
life  returned  from  that  far  country  into  which  it 
had  strayed.  Not  only  did  it  fill  her  so  that  her 
body  glowed  with  its  presence,  but  in  waves  it 
surged  towards  him,  flooding  and  enveloping  his 
senses,  drowning  his  reason.  She  did  not  answer, 
but  smiling,  and  with  eyes  half-shut,  looked  at 
him  under  her  lashes.  Her  fingers,  that  seemed 
to  him  to  bear  each  an  individual  existence,  had 
clasped  his  hand  and  were  now  twisting  their  way 
between  his  own.  With  one  hand  he  still  held  her 
wrist,  the  fingers  of  the  other  were  closely  inter- 
locked with  hers.  He  pressed  harder  on  her 
wrist  and  repeated  his  question. 

"Does  that  hurt?" 

She  smiled.  "Yes,  a  little.  Why  do  you  like 
hurting  me  ?     Oh !  not  so  hard ! " 

If  a  moment  before  she  had  frightened  him  with 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   225 

vast  and  terrible  visions,  she  in  this  instant  re- 
vealed the  most  intimate  things  both  in  life  and  in 
herself.  Then,  she  had  stripped  his  heart  bare 
before  loneliness  and  fear;  now,  with  a  thousand 
delicate  and  clinging  tendrils,  she  wrapped  his 
body  and  soul.  He  bent  close  over  her.  "What 
do  you  want  of  me;  why  have  you  such  power 
over  me?" 

Her  eyes  were  wide  open  now.  She  made  no 
answer,  but  lay  still  looking  at  him. 

Deliberately  he  freed  his  hand  that  she  still 
clung  to.  Each  finger  had  individually  to  gain 
its  own  liberty,  then  he  put  his  arms  round  and 
lifted  her.  She  hung  a  dead  weight.  Bending 
close  he  looked  into  the  depths  of  her  eyes  which 
never  for  a  moment  left  his  face.  Could  he  never 
read  the  thoughts  that  lay  behind?  He  spoke 
slowly  on  an  indrawn  breath.  "I  love  you  more 
than  my  own  soul,  more  than  my  own  life." 

She  put  up  her  arms  and  clasped  him  round  his 
neck.  He  kissed  her  white  face  and  throat,  and 
even  the  torn  strips  of  her  dress. 

"You  must  carry  me  into  my  room,  please.  I 
hate  this  place." 

He  lifted  and  carried  her  in  his  arms. 

The  door  swung  to  behind  them  and  the  dim 
twilight  settled  down  upon  the  debris  of  the  room, 
which  gradually  became  indistinct  and  covered 


226      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

with  darkness,  till  later  the  white  moonlight,  in  a 
shape  sharply  defined  by  the  square  window  case- 
ment, crept  across  the  floor  mercilessly  lighting 
up  each  broken  fragment. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

ALL  manifestations  and  processes  of  life, 
which  in  times  of  prosperity  smile  on  and 
flatter  the  heart  of  man,  have  concealed 
in  the  very  stuff  of  their  making  a  quality  of  awe 
and  terror.  Even  the  calm  of  a  summer  sea  can 
suggest  vague  fears;  the  sunlight  can  appear  a 
mysterious  and  ghastly  thing  and  darkness  holds 
all  the  terrors  and  all  despair.  When  the  day 
dawned  and  the  sun  flung  its  first  sheath  of  rays 
over  the  island,  Hicksey  watched  the  cold  grey 
shadows  on  the  sand-dunes  with  a  sense  of  numb 
hopelessness.  There  was  in  his  heart  only  hatred 
and  contempt,  despair  and  loathing.  Wherever 
he  turned  there  was  no  hope  to  look  to,  not  even 
an  excuse  for  his  own  degradation.  The  purpose 
of  his  life  lay  wrecked,  and  he  knew  that  he  could 
not  even  pick  up  the  fragments. 

As  he  looked  down  upon  the  woman  who  still 
lay  asleep,  he  looked  upon  all  that  was  left.  He 
saw  her  face  as  common  and  repulsive.  She  lay 
there  asleep,  a  mere  animal  in  the  mean  and 

squalid  room.     Yes,  she  was  all  that  was  left  of 

227 


228      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

his  life;  he  had  given  up  all  for  her,  and  now  he 
hated  and  despised  her.  How  she  had  made  him 
hate  and  despise  himself!  And  that  terrible 
vitality,  that  was  her  power  and  her  scourge,  how 
he  had  struggled  with  and  striven  to  resist  it,  and 
how,  by  the  powers  of  all  that  was  ugly,  had  he 
been  trampled  deep  in  the  mire!  He  feared 
something  monstrous  in  himself  that  might  rise 
up  and  again  humiliate  him.  No,  in  the  last  few 
hours  he  had  ceased  even  to  fear  even  that.  He 
was  without  hope  or  any  aspiration.  Let  her  only 
sleep  on;  he  wished  that  she  might  die,  and  that 
he  might  never  see  her  eyes  again.  If  she  were 
to  wake  he  knew  that  she  would  rise  and  follow 
him  blindly  and  desperately  as  on  the  preceding 
days — follow  in  silence  with  mute  questioning, 
eyes  waiting  on  all  his  movements,  driving  him  to 
exasperation. 

As  he  looked  back  upon  the  past  week  he  saw 
in  crude  flat  colours  his  own  calamity.  His  work 
had  been  destroyed  and  he  could  never,  he  knew 
well,  be  able  to  cover  that  ground  again.  For 
years  he  had  lived  in  the  thoughts  of  his  own 
ambition.  It  had  blinded  him  to  the  facts  of  a 
more  poignant  life.  It  had  served  both  as  a 
crutch  to  support  and  as  a  veil  mercifully  to  hide 
his  own  insignificance.  Then  in  one  evening  this 
woman  had  come  with  her  charm  and  her  in- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   229 

domitable  vitality  and  had  swept  away  the  whole 
purpose  of  his  life.  Now  that  it  was  gone,  he 
tottered  and  fell  and  only  with  anguish  could  he 
look  upon  the  naked  facts  of  existence.  What 
now  dominated  the  dumb  and  painful  stupor  in 
which  he  moved  was  hatred  for  the  woman  who 
had  helped  him  to  his  fall.  He  hated  even  his 
first  remembrances  of  her,  they  came  as  reproaches 
of  his  own  weakness  and  folly.  He  hated  her 
body  that  both  repulsed,  and  yet,  in  moments  of 
weakness  and  delirium,  attracted;  he  hated  her 
mind  which,  evasive  and  muffled,  he  could  never 
understand.  And  still  she  clung  to  him  and  exer- 
cised a  desperate  power  over  his  actions,  a  power 
which  he  could  seldom  anticipate,  and  which  each 
time  left  him  hating  and  despising  her  the  more. 

Even  when  occupied  with  his  regular  work  at 
the  hospital  he  could  not  always  escape.  She  fol- 
lowed near  him.  Her  eyes  ever  on  him  with  their 
questioning,  dumb  appeal.  Only  while  she  slept 
could  he  be  free,  and  then  he  hated  her  more 
than  when  she  was  awake.  There  was  about  her 
sleep  something  exposed  and  shameless.  How 
was  it  possible  that  this  woman  should  be  able  to 
tear  from  his  eyes  all  veils  ? 

He  left  the  room  silently;  the  sun  was  already 
hot  upon  the  sand-hills.  He  cast  hardly  a  glance 
at  the  wide  blue  expanse  of  the  lagoon.     It  was 


230      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

to  him  merely  a  stretch  of  water  that  cut  him  off 
from  his  fellows,  a  barrier  that  he  feared  to  cross 
because  he  had  lost  all  confidence  in  life  and  in 
the  future.  With  his  eyes  fixed  on  the  track  he 
plodded  heavily  across  the  sand  that  slipped  from 
beneath  his  feet. 

At  the  hospital  he  found  James  and  the  two 
nurses.  He  knew  that  if  ever  he  gave  the  least 
opening  they  would  be  inclined  to  pity  him,  and 
their  pity  was  the  one  thing  he  could  not  yet  bear. 
The  fact  that  they  were  awed  by  the  completeness 
of  his  ruin  they  could  not  hide,  but  never  by  word 
or  deed  would  he  let  them  show  that  they  were 
sorry  for  him.  Hicksey  greeted  them  curtly,  and 
began  at  once  his  morning  inspection  of  the  pa- 
tients. The  regular  routine  of  the  hospital  was 
an  escape  from  the  gnawing  thoughts  of  regret. 
He  was  glad  to  have  escaped  for  a  time  the  in- 
sistent gaze  of  those  eyes,  whose  thoughts  he  could 
never  fathom. 

When  Alice  Desmond  woke  it  was  late  in  the 
day.  For  the  last  week  she  had  slept  but  little, 
but  had  waited  anxiously  on  all  Hicksey's  move- 
ments. Unable  wholly  to  understand  why  his 
face  had  been  turned  away,  she  still  cherished  a 
dying  hope  that  he  might  yet  come  back.  With- 
out this  hope  she  was  utterly  alone  and  her  life 
lost  all  meaning.     Her  thoughts  drew  back  in 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   231 

panic  from  the  empty  abysses  over  which  her  life 
swayed.  So  every  day  she  had  watched  him  and 
most  of  the  nights  too;  as  if  the  power  of  her  gaze 
might  draw  from  him  some  response,  might  extract 
some  essence  from  him  that  she  might  call  her 
own.  But  at  last,  tired  out  by  watching,  she  had 
fallen  asleep  and  had  slept  soundly.  As  con- 
sciousness came  back,  a  host  of  scurrying  ques- 
tions struggled  to  the  surface.  Why  had  she  slept 
so  late?  What  was  he  doing?  Where  had  he 
gone  ?  In  the  first  waking  moments  she  was  filled 
with  the  horror  of  being  alone  upon  the  earth,  an 
insignificant  fraction  of  some  monstrous  and  in- 
sane system.  To  escape  from  the  terror  of  that 
picture  she  must  obstinately  believe  in  her  power 
over  the  doctor.  But  if,  perhaps,  he  had  escaped 
and  gone  to  the  other  island?  At  the  thought 
she  hurriedly  began  dressing,  while  in  her  brain 
the  insistent  idea  that  she  must  never  again  let 
him  out  of  her  sight  struggled  and  tumbled  amidst 
a  multitude  of  smaller  fears. 

As  she  neared  the  hospital  a  dread  grew  on  her 
that  he  might  have  gone.  She  ran  over  the  yield- 
ing sand  eager  to  know  the  worst  that  might  have 
befallen.  Dishevelled  and  breathless  she  reached 
the  wards.  Hicksey  was  at  the  far  end  talking 
to  one  of  the  black  patients.  When  Alice  Des- 
mond burst  open  the  door  all  turned  to  look  at 


232      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

her ;  untidy  and  ill-dressed  she  looked  wild  almost 
to  the  limit  of  madness.  At  sight  of  the  doctor  she 
recovered  herself  a  little.  Then,  with  quick  steps, 
she  crossed  the  ward. 

Hicksey,  after  the  merest  glance  in  her  direc- 
tion, turned  again  to  his  work.  The  others 
watched  to  see  what  she  would  do. 

Days  ago  all  question  of  her  authority  over  the 
other  women  had  ceased  to  exist,  and  now  they 
watched  with  half-contemptuous  pity  her  tor- 
mented and  useless  suffering. 

There  are  moments  when  knowledge  comes 
with  killing  pain  and  leaves  no  possibility  of  eva- 
sion. For  the  last  few  days  Alice  Desmond  had 
moved  in  a  world  of  misery  that  was  clouded  with 
deliberate  stupidity.  Now  in  a  flash,  as  Hicksey 
turned  away,  she  saw  her  own  detachment,  and  on 
the  instant  life  appeared  as  a  blinding  interroga- 
tion mark.  Life  demanded  of  itself  why  there 
should  be  any  life.  Why  suffering  so  intense, 
loneliness  so  desperate?  There  was  no  hope  of 
any  answer  to  that  question.  Despair  and  terror 
killed  for  a  moment  all  feeling  of  individual  voli- 
tion. 

As  she  stretched  forward  a  hand  to  touch  him, 
her  voice  sounded  far  away  and  empty.  "I  am 
here,"  she  said.  "Speak  to  me.  I  did  not  mean 
to  sleep  so  late.     Oh,  speak  to  me."     In  those 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   233 

words  there  was  admission  of  all  defeat,  all  that 
she  now  clung  to  was  an  infinite  pity  for  herself. 

All  the  people  in  the  ward,  the  whites  and  the 
natives  alike,  were  watching  with  interest  and  ex- 
citement the  situation  that  seemed  to  have  come 
so  suddenly  to  a  head.  On  their  faces  was  a  look 
of  cruelty  not  to  be  concealed,  the  inevitable  re- 
sponse to  the  nakedness  of  her  appeal.  At  the 
same  time  they  were  ashamed  and  did  not  dare 
look  at  one  another,  but  held  their  breath  as  if 
each  moment  might  contain  a  discovery.  All  eyes 
were  on  the  woman  who  seemed  to  be  held  together 
and  kept  from  crumbling  to  pieces  only  by  the 
tenseness  of  the  moment. 

^'Speak  to  me.  Look  at  me.  Speak  to  me." 
Her  hands  fell  limp  at  her  sides. 

For  a  moment  Hicksey  bent  over  his  work  and 
spoke  to  a  patient ;  then,  as  if  his  control  had  sud- 
denly snapped,  he  turned  to  Nurse  Desmond: 
"Go,  go,"  he  shouted  at  her,  ''for  God's  sake  leave 
me." 

His  words  rekindled  her  spirit.  * 'Leave  you 
and  go  where ?  What  have  I  to  do  now?  Where 
have  I  to  go?  Into  the  sea  and  drown  myself?" 
Her  anger  rose  as  she  spoke,  and  the  words  came 
faster  and  faster.  "Would  you  be  glad  to  have 
me  drowned,  now  that  you  have  done  with  me, 
used  me  up,  and  thrown  me  aside?     You  have 


234      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

turned  my  life  to  hell.  I  have  given  you  every- 
thing and  you  have  thrown  it  away,  and  now  there 
is  nothing  left.  Nothing,  nothing  left,  and  I  am 
naked  before  these  people,  and  you  don't  care. 
You  have  made  me  promises  and  broken  them 
every  one.  You  think  only  of  yourself  and  make 
your  work  an  excuse  for  your  selfishness.  You 
cold,  selfish  brute — you  man ! "  She  was  close  up 
to  him  now,  panting  in  her  anger.  *'Now  you  tell 
me  to  go.     Where  shall  I  go?     Tell  me  that." 

Surprised  and  rather  awed  by  her  violence  he 
drew  back.  Perhaps  her  accusation  was  true,  of 
that  he  could  not  judge;  he  only  knew  that  her 
presence  was  a  bitterness  and  humiliation.  Could 
she  not  see  how  he  hated  her  both  in  her  intoler- 
able silent  watchfulness  and  in  such  outbursts  of 
violent  reproach.  The  look  in  his  eyes  must  have 
told  something  of  this  thought,  for  suddenly,  her 
rage  all  spent,  she  stretched  out  her  hands.  *Tor- 
give  me,  oh  forgive  me,  only  love  me  once  again 
and  let  me  love  you,  and  you  can  do  what  you 
like."  Her  hands  clutched  at  and  clung  to  his 
coat. 

For  some  moments  they  stood  silent  looking  at 
one  another.  He  felt,  more  fearfully  than  his 
hatred,  the  weight  of  her  attachment.  Would  she 
follow  always,  and  could  she  never  be  shaken  off? 

"Let  go";  he  twisted  her  hands  free — "have  you 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   235 

no  shame?  How  much  lower  do  you  want  to 
drag  me  down?  You  have  made  me  waste  and 
throw  away  everything,  and  have  destroyed  all 
that  I  lived  for.  I  have  nothing  more  to  give 
you,  nothing,  nothing.  Love  you?  You  have 
taught  me  to  hate  you.  Go,  for  God's  sake,  leave 
me." 

She  stood  as  if  perplexed,  opening  and  shutting 
her  eyes,  looking  at  him  and  yet  beyond  him. 
Then  she  raised  her  hands,  and  as  if  groping  her 
way  stumbled  forward.  Desperately  she  clung  to 
him.  "I  cannot,  I  cannot,"  she  wailed.  "Where 
am  I  to  go?     You  are  all  that  is  left  to  me." 

A  feeling  of  oppression,  acute  and  at  the  same 
time  numbing,  beat  about  his  heart  and  spread  to 
every  tissue  of  his  body.  Blindly  his  reason  beat 
against  blank  walls.  Was  there  no  escape? 
Had  she  followed  to  claim  him  and  make  him 
her  slave  for  always?  Must  he  drag  his  life  out 
chained  to  his  disgrace  and  his  humiliation,  be  no 
more  a  free  man  with  a  purpose  and  a  work,  but 
only  the  slave  of  a  woman?  A  ray  of  hope  came; 
at  least  he  could  escape  to  the  other  island,  leave 
her  and  so  have  a  period  in  which  he  could  stand 
on  his  own  feet  and  regain  some  of  his  self- 
possession.  In  his  present  state  he  was  too  wor- 
ried, too  sore  to  resist;  escape  was  all  that  was 
left.     He  felt  the  cowardice  of  his  resolve,  and  his 


236       WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

anger  blazed  up  again,  though  he  controlled  him- 
self to  speak  calmly.     "Let  go ;  do  as  I  tell  you ! '' 

At  once  she  dropped  her  hands  and  stood 
anxious  before  him,  hoping  to  have  pleased  him 
by  her  quick  obeying. 

His  conviction  was  strong  that  he  must  stoop  to 
the  meanest  evasion,  no  matter  so  long  as  he  could 
get  away.  He  pulled  out  his  watch,  and  looking 
at  it  seemed  to  reckon  the  chances.  "In  an  hour's 
time,"  he  said,  "I  can  have  finished  this  work. 
Stay  here  while  I  go  into  the  other  ward;  at  the 
end  of  an  hour  I  will  come  back;  then  we  must 
talk  things  out."  He  gave  a  quick  glance  towards 
James  and  the  two  nurses,  then  added:  "This  is 
not  the  time  or  place." 

"You  will  come  back  and  forgive  all  that  I  have 
said  and  done  and  not  be  angry  any  more?"  She 
was  now  submissive  and  tender  in  her  appeal. 

He  nodded  his  head  with  a  familiar  movement 
which  she  knew  well,  and  which  reminded  her  of 
the  old  days  of  happiness.  "Yes,  I'll  come;  wait 
for  me  here." 

"Promise  you  will  come  in  an  hour,  not  later." 

"Yes,  I  promise."  With  that  he  went  out,  and 
she  listened  to  his  footsteps  walking  along  the  cor- 
ridor to  the  next  ward. 

So  wrought  up  was  she  by  the  strain  of  the  last 
few  days,  her  misery  and  fear  had  been  so  great. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   237 

that  she  had  given  little  thought  to  James  and  to 
the  nurses.  She  now  became  conscious  of  her 
lonely  position  in  the  middle  of  the  room  and  the 
fact  that  they  were  still  watching.  For  a  while 
she  sat  still,  trying  to  place  clearly  in  her  mind 
the  incidents  of  the  last  few  minutes.  She  must 
make  efforts  to  rise  from  her  state  of  utter 
despondency  and  try  to  meet  the  situation.  If 
she  could  once  win  back  her  influence  over  the 
doctor  then  nothing  mattered,  but  to  do  that  she 
must  become  cool  and  mistress  of  all  her  powers. 
The  fact  that  she  felt  no  shame  at  the  violence  of 
the  last  scene  was  perhaps  her  best  defence.  She 
felt,  on  the  contrary,  that  she  had  won  her  point, 
and  that  her  position  was  now  stronger  than  be- 
fore. Then  came  a  quick  resentment  that  the 
people  over  there  should  be  looking  at  her  so 
curiously  and  that  they  should  have  seen  every- 
thing. She  walked  towards  the  table'  and  oc- 
cupied herself  with  small  duties  of  arranging  and 
tidying,  and  so  robust  is  our  human  nature  that 
now  she  could  believe  herself  able  to  meet  un- 
abashed the  gaze  of  any  of  the  others.  And  all 
the  while  that  such  thoughts  were  playing  over 
the  surface  of  her  consciousness,  she  was  wonder- 
ing how  she  would  meet  Hicksey,  how  she  might 
win  him. 

For  a  while  the  work  in  the  ward  went  quickly 


238      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

forward.  From  the  end  of  the  room  where  James 
and  the  nurses  were  working  they  could  get, 
through  the  open  window,  a  view  of  the  harbour. 
Nurse  Hilton  happened  to  look  out,  and  saw  al- 
ready at  some  little  distance  from  the  house  the 
figure  of  the  doctor  running  across  the  sands. 
She  drew  Nurse  Toms'  attention  and  they  both 
looked  eagerly.  Alice  Desmond  was  still  oc- 
cupied at  the  table  in  the  middle  of  the  room.  Al- 
though neither  of  the  women  had  much  sympathy 
for  her,  it  was  not  in  them  to  let  the  doctor  escape 
so  easily.  He  deserved,  they  thought,  all  that  he 
could  get. 

Nurse  Hilton  walked  across  the  room  to  where 
Alice  Desmond  stood.  "If  you  want  to  talk  to 
the  doctor  you  had  better  be  quick.  He  is  on  his 
way  to  the  harbour,  and  I  don't  think  he  means 
to  come  back." 

"It's  not  true.     You  lie." 

"Go  and  look  for  yourself." 

Alice  Desmond  rushed  to  the  window.  "Oh, 
my  God,  my  God!"  She  clutched  at  her  breast. 
"I  will  never  let  him  leave  me.  If  he  leaves  me  I 
will  kill  myself."  Her  heart  beat  wildly,  and  the 
blood  pulsed  fiercely  in  her  brain.  For  a  moment 
she  thought  she  was  going  to  faint;  then,  calling 
on  all  her  strength,  she  ran  from  the  room  and 
down  towards  the  beach. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   239 

When  Hicksey  reached  the  shore,  he  found  the 
tide  very  low.  For  a  moment  he  hesitated  whether 
he  could  pull  the  dinghy  down  over  the  long  stretch 
of  beach,  or  whether,  to  save  time,  he  would  wade 
out  to  the  boat  which  was  anchored  only  a  few 
yards  from  the  break  of  the  waves.  He  decided 
on  the  latter  course,  and  was  just  kicking  off  his 
shoes  when  he  was  exasperated  to  see  Nurse  Des- 
mond come  from  behind  the  sand-dunes  and  run 
towards  him  across  the  beach.  He  swore  to  him- 
self that  nothing  should  keep  him  now.  Furious 
and  ashamed,  he  would  let  the  woman  know  his 
mind.  At  all  costs  he  must  get  out  of  her  pres- 
ence. 

She  ran  to  him  and  held  him  in  her  arms.  In 
her  eyes  there  was  a  look  of  desperate  resolve. 
Of  the  reproach  he  had  expected  there  was  not  a 
word.  "Where  are  you  going?"  she  demanded. 
"Why  did  you  leave  me?" 

"I'm  going  to  be  rid  of  you.  If  you  won't 
leave  me,  then  I  shall  leave  you.  I'm  tired  of 
feeling  your  eyes  on  me  all  day  and  all  night. 
I'm  tired  of  the  sight  of  you,  and  of  the  touch  and 
the  sound  of  you.  There's  work  for  me  on 
Kanna  Island.  There  I  can  be  alone.  I  leave 
you  because  I  hate  you,  because  I  wish  I  never 
might  see  you  again.  Let  go,  woman,  do  you 
hear?" 


240      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

"You  mustn't  go.  I  cannot  live  here  without 
you.     I  cannot  be  left  alone." 

He  wrenched  at  her  arms  and  twisted  them  free 
of  his  neck.  Then  he  held  her  at  arm's  length. 
Wildly  she  begged  of  him.  'Tor  pity's  sake, 
take  me.  I  shall  die  if  I  am  left  alone.  I  love 
you,  let  me  serve  you,  only  let  me  be  near  you." 

In  a  confused,  unreasoning  despair  he  put  for- 
ward arguments  that  he  knew  were  irrelevant. 
"Your  work  and  your  duty  is  here;  besides  you 
know  what  a  fuss  you  made  over  that  man  Sher- 
win,  and  how  frightened  you  were.  Your  place 
is  here,  and,  by  God,  you're  going  to  stay  here  I " 

Again  she  pleaded :  "Only  let  me  be  near  you ; 
I  will  ask  nothing  else.  I  cannot  live  without 
you." 

"Then  die,  and  damn  you! "  He  suddenly  re- 
leased his  hold,  and,  turning,  ran  into  the  water 
towards  the  boat. 

In  an  instant  she  was  after  him.  The  boat  was 
in  shallow  water,  which  came  not  even  as  high  as 
their  waists.  The  doctor  scrambled  on  board, 
then  he  turned  and  tried  to  push  away  the  woman, 
who  had  already  grasped  a  firm  hold  on  the  rail 
at  the  stern. 

"I'll  drown  you  rather  than  you  should  come 
with  me,"  he  muttered. 

Her  face  was  white  and  drawn,  and  she  made 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   241 

no  response,  but  held  the  tighter.  He  struck  at 
her  hands  and  arms,  but  the  pain  seemed  to  make 
no  impression.  In  her  agony  and  dread  of  deser- 
tion her  senses  had  ceased  to  function  as  those  of 
a  human  being,  and  had  become  as  those  of  a 
drowning  animal,  all  centred  in  one  frantic  re- 
solve. Nothing  short  of  cutting  off  her  hands 
would  have  loosened  her  grip  on  the  rail.  This 
power  in  her,  if  something  less  than  human,  was, 
nevertheless,  hard  to  cope  with,  and  Hicksey  felt 
a  kind  of  despair  as  he  bent  over  her  white  and 
suffering  face.  The  very  brutality  of  hitting  at 
her  bare  knuckles  was  awful.  With  a  curse  he 
turned  away  and  went  forward  to  pull  up  the 
anchor.  Painfully  and  still  with  the  manner  of 
some  drowning  and  sub-conscious  animal  she 
clambered  on  board.  As  she  lay  still,  close  to  the 
mast,  her  eyes  followed  his  movements  with  ap- 
prehension. When  he  came  aft  he  brutally 
ordered  her  out  of  his  way;  she  obeyed  submis- 
sively, trying  to  anticipate  all  his  movements.  In 
a  few  moments  he  had  hoisted  sail,  and  the  boat 
like  a  live  thing  bent  to  the  wind  and  headed  its 
way  northward. 

The  clear  blue  waves  lapped  the  sides  of  the 
boat,  and  the  ripples  made  music  under  the  bows ; 
the  sun  beat  hotly  on  the  deck  and  the  white  sail 
shone  against  the  deep  blue  of  the  sky.     From 


242      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

time  to  time  the  man  and  woman  looked  at  one 
another,  though  they  spoke  no  word.  Were  they 
then  inseparably  bound  together?  The  man 
rebelled  at  the  thought,  hated  it,  and  yet  could  not 
put  it  away.  He  questioned  why  she  should  have 
such  power  over  him.  After  all,  what  was  she, 
what  in  the  last  weeks  had  she  become  but  a  raw 
and  bleeding  fragment  of  humanity,  drifting  with- 
out religion  or  morality,  a  being  who  clung  to  him 
as  to  the  only  concrete  and  tangible  support;  and 
even  he  himself  stood  uncertainly  in  a  shifting 
and  rapidly  disintegrating  world.  He  knew  that 
she  would  drive  him  on  to  his  destruction  and  to 
the  destruction  of  them  both.  This  was  inevit- 
able. He  hated  her  presence.  All  that  he  had 
held  to  she  had  demoralized  and  made  weak,  and 
she  would  urge  him  further  on  the  way  to  ruin. 
They  were  bound  together  by  the  weaknesses  in 
human  nature,  and  the  weaker  they  became  the 
more  inevitably  were  their  fates  joined.  At  times 
an  impulse  of  anger  would  prompt  him  to  kill  and 
have  done  with  her,  and  then  would  follow  feel- 
ings of  pity  and  regret;  but  whether  he  hated  or 
pitied  he  always  despised  her  as  if  she  were  some 
contemptible  part  of  himself  that  he  would  fain 
cut  free  from  and  be  done  with. 

All  day  the  boat  sailed  on,  the  sun  blazed  over- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   243 

head  and  then  descended  to  the  westward,  and  yet 
they  did  not  speak;  as  atoms  upon  the  sea  they 
drifted  alone  and  naked  before  the  terrors  of  life 
unveiled. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

OF  all  things  that  obstruct  human  vision 
work  is  perhaps  the  greatest  and  the 
most  needful.  Hope  and  ambition  may 
lie  in  fragments  and  even  a  man's  physical  health 
may  be  utterly  broken,  and  yet  to  stave  off  the 
last  humiliation  of  seeing  himself  failing  and 
desolate  he  will  cling  to  his  work,  and  thus  in  an 
obstinate  blindness  refuse  to  recognize  his  own 
dereliction.  Or  it  may  be  that  as  a  sudden  re- 
action from  sharp  disappointment  he  will  fling 
himself  into  any  work  that  is  to  his  hand  and  so 
delay  the  full  impact  of  his  pain.  Thus  it  was 
with  Sherwin  when  he  received,  a  few  days  pre- 
vious to  Hicksey's  arrival,  a  letter  from  his  brother 
telling  him  that  after  sinking  a  shaft  to  a  depth 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet  he  had  found  no  gold, 
that  the  money  was  now  all  spent;  that,  as  there 
was  no  object  in  going  deeper,  he  had  given  up  his 
claim,  and  had  started  northward  again  in  the 
hope  of  better  success.  After  realizing  with  the 
first  shock  of  the  news  that  they  were  now  both 
penniless,  Sherwin  turned  to  his  work  with  a  dull 
and  vindictive  energy.     All  his  savings  for  the  last 

year  had  been  squandered.     He  cursed  not  only 

244 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   245 

his  brother  but  the  folly  of  his  own  trustfulness. 
His  feelings  were  so  dominated  by  anger  that  for 
the  first  few  days  he  was  stimulated  rather  than 
depressed,  and  he  worked  untiringly.  At  night, 
when  his  work  was  done,  and  the  natives  crouched 
about  their  fires  glad  of  a  respite  from  his  bully- 
ing, he  drank  heavily  of  the  whisky  that  Pomfrey 
had  brought  over  from  the  mainland.  So  long 
as  the  cutter  stayed  at  the  island  the  old  seaman 
would  go  up  and  drink  with  him  in  the  evenings, 
and  Sherwin  found  much  consolation  in  being 
able  to  recount  his  own  misfortunes  and  tell  of  the 
hardness  of  his  fate.  It  was  not  till  Pomfrey  had 
made  his  departure,  and  the  nights  passed  once 
more  in  solitude,  that  despair  pressed  slowly  and 
inexorably  on  the  heart  of  the  solitary  man. 

For  more  than  a  year  each  day  as  it  had  passed 
had  cheated  and  cajoled  him  of  some  fraction  of 
his  rights  to  the  civilization  and  traditions  in 
which  he  had  been  brought  up;  and  now,  after 
months  of  longing  for  recognized  mastery  over  a 
remote  and  indifferent  society,  he  found,  in  the 
cruel  passage  of  a  few  days,  that  he  had  become 
an  outcast,  not  only  penniless,  but  prevented  by 
the  inscrutable  disposition  of  his  solitude  from 
ever  being  able  to  renew  the  ways  and  customs  of 
other  men.  And  yet  to  save  what  fragments  were 
left  he  persisted  doggedly  at  the  work  imposed  on 


246      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

him,  once  a  pleasure  and  an  assurance,  now,  since 
hope  was  lost,  his  sole  protection  against  too  clear 
a  picture  of  his  own  fall. 

When  one  day  Coffee  reported  that  the  doctor's 
boat  was  coming  round  the  point,  the  news  awak- 
ened in  Sherwin  a  kind  of  dull  interest.  At  any 
rate,  nothing  could  make  the  position  that  he  en- 
dured worse  than  it  was,  and  it  would  be  some- 
thing of  a  relief  to  talk  to  another  white  man  and 
tell  again  of  his  misfortunes. 

Sherwin  climbed  one  of  the  sand-hills  and 
watched  the  slow  approach  of  the  white  sail.  For 
a  while  he  did  not  notice  that  Nurse  Desmond  was 
on  board,  crouched  at  the  stern.  Then,  as  if 
against  his  will  and  reluctantly,  a  moving  interest 
in  life,  that  carried  the  semblance  of  hope,  pulsed 
through  his  veins.  It  did  not  come  as  a  quick  re- 
sponse to  stimulus,  but  slowly  and  in  deliberate 
opposition  to  his  will  it  rose,  forcing  all  the  doors 
that  had  been  shut  so  resolutely  by  that  long  soli- 
tude, which  daily  had  pressed  him  further  and 
further  in  upon  himself,  in  towards  the  centre, 
where  lurked  madness.  Now  the  doors  opened, 
and  once  more  sharp  pain  struck  through  them. 

He  sat  motionless,  watching  the  boat  approach 
and  run  in  close  to  the  shore.  He  saw  the  doctor 
drop  the  anchor  over  the  bows  and  then  let  down 
the  sail  with  a  rattle.     He  saw  him  move  about 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   247 

the  boat  making  things  ship-shape,  and  all  the 
while  the  woman  sat  watching  him  in  the  stern, 
only  moving  when  the  sail  threatened  to  fall  on 
her.  Then  he  saw  Hicksey  jump  over  the  side 
and  wade  through  the  shallow  water;  he  remem- 
bered with  a  sudden  pang  how  on  their  last  visit 
the  doctor  had  carried  the  woman  in  his  arms. 
This  time  she  followed  him  over  the  side  and 
waded  after  him  through  the  waters. 

A  guess  at  the  changed  relation  between  the 
two  flashed  through  Sherwin's  mind.  A  new  in- 
terest was  suddenly  awake,  but  an  instinct  of  cau- 
tion warned  him  to  move  warily.  He  rose  and 
walked  leisurely  over  the  hills  towards  the  new- 
comers. When  he  met  them,  the  doctor  was  some 
paces  ahead,  walking  fast  with  his  eyes  on  the 
track;  Nurse  Desmond  was  hurrying  to  keep 
within  distance.  When  within  about  twenty 
yards,  Sherwin  stood  still  and  waited  their  ap- 
proach. 

"Good  morning,  doctor;  are  you  m  a  hurry 
this  morning?"  he  shouted. 

Hicksey,  who  had  not  seen  the  man,  was  sur- 
prised by  the  sudden  greeting.  At  once  he  tried 
to  assume  his  most  casual  manner,  as  if  to  hide 
all  the  thoughts  of  exasperation  and  distress  that 
moved  within  his  mind.  "Good  morning,"  he 
muttered,  and  pressed  on.     Then  as  if  with  an 


248      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

afterthought,  he  shouted:  "I  suppose  it  won't 
be  long  now  before  you  start  for  the  mainland. 
Have  you  heard  from  your  brother  again?" 

Sherwin  had  come  close  to  him.  "Yes,  I've 
heard  from  my  brother,"  he  snarled,  ''and  what 
do  you  think?  It's  all  a  damned  fraud,  there's 
nothing  in  it  at  all."  His  voice  rose  as  if  in  an- 
ger, and  yet  all  the  while  that  he  was  speaking  he 
was  occupied,  not  so  much  by  what  he  was  say- 
ing as  by  the  white  face  of  the  woman,  who  had 
by  this  time  come  up  with  them  and  now  stood 
close  at  Hicksey's  side.  ''There  was  not  a  bloody 
colour  of  gold  in  the  whole  concern,  not  a  colour, 
though  they  spent  God  knows  how  much  money 
in  sinking  a  shaft  to  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet. 
They  spent  all  my  savings  for  the  last  eighteen 
months,  and  now  write  and  ask  me  to  get  on  with 
my  job  and  politely  send  them  some  more.  Damn 
them,  they've  had  the  last  penny  they  shall  ever 
get  out  of  me! "  He  paused  for  a  moment,  then, 
looking  straight  at  the  woman,  he  continued: 
"So  I  shan't  be  leaving  the  island  as  soon  as  was 
expected.  That  will  save  the  Government  the 
trouble  of  finding  another  man  for  the  job." 

Alice  Desmond  looked  quickly  away  and  stood 
closer  to  Hicksey.  The  doctor,  who  had  been  lis- 
tening with  his  eyes  directed  towards  the  ground, 
had  not  seen  the  insolent  look  on  Sherwin's  face. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   249 

He  felt  a  negative  kind  of  satisfaction  that  fortune 
should  be  hard  on  others  as  well  as  on  himself; 
with  this  feeling  there  stirred  a  tardy  instinct  of 
comradeship  for  a  man  who  was  perhaps  suffer- 
ing as  keenly  as  himself.  He  had  an  extravagant 
desire  to  speak  of  his  own  suffering,  to  make  of 
that  other  man  a  confidant  and  equal. 

"Have  you  lost  everything?"  he  asked. 

"Yes,  everything;  and  they  ask  me  for  more, 
as  if  life  here  were  all  a  damned  picnic." 

"I'm  sorry  for  you.  You  ought  to  get  away. 
We  ought  both  to  get  away;  this  is  no  place  for 
white  men  to  live  in." 

Sherwin's  eyes  rested  on  Alice  Desmond,  whose 
presence  seemed  to  be  forgotten  by  the  doctor. 
Sneeringly  he  asked:  "And  what  about  the 
woman?  I  see  the  lady  has  come  without  her 
portmanteau." 

They  both  looked  at  Alice  Desmond,  who  had 
nothing  with  her  but  the  wet  clothes  in  which  she 
stood.  For  a  good  thirty  seconds  they  regarded 
her  in  silence.  She  stood  close  to  the  doctor,  and 
her  eyes  entreated  for  mercy.  From  neither  of 
them  could  the  piteous  nakedness  of  her  soul  be 
concealed.  Sherwin  gave  a  short  laugh,  not  so 
much  from  deliberate  cruelty,  but  because  it  was 
the  only  comment  with  which  his  intellect  could 
meet  the  situation. 


250      WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

Hicksey  spoke  to  the  woman.  "Go  up  to  the 
house,  and  I  will  follow  in  a  minute." 

She  walked  past  him  obediently. 

When  she  was  out  of  hearing,  he  turned  angrily 
upon  Sherwin.  '*  You  blackguard  1  If  you  think 
you  can  insult  women  in  that  way,  I  can  soon 
teach  you  to  the  contrary." 

"Oh,  do  you  keep  that  and  other  privileges  to 
yourself  and  teach  her  to  run  through  the  water 
after  you  like  a  dog ! " 

The  force  of  this  taunt  could  not  well  be  an- 
swered. It  was  difficult  for  Hicksey  to  keep  to  a 
high  tone  in  the  face  of  so  obvious  a  truth. 
"What  happens  to  Nurse  Desmond  is  not  your 
affair,"  he  said;  "and  I  tell  you  this  that  if  I  find 
you  molesting  or  in  any  way  forcing  yourself  upon 
her,  it  will  be  the  worse  for  you." 

For  some  seconds  Sherwin  made  no  remark,  and 
in  the  silence  the  doctor's  words  seemed  to  echo 
more  flatly  than  at  the  utterance. 

"I  see  you're  a  gentleman,"  sneered  Sherwin; 
then,  changing  his  tone:  "Now  look  here,  listen 
to  what  I've  got  to  say.  You're  tired  of  her,  I  can 
see  that.  I've  been  tired  of  a  woman  myself  be- 
fore now.  Play  the  game.  Pass  her  on  to  me. 
I'll  take  her  off  your  hands." 

Hicksey  spoke  deliberately  and  in  an  even  voice. 
"You  damned  blackguard !     I  warn  you  to  keep 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   251 

your  distance  if  you  want  to  keep  a  whole  skin." 
With  that  he  turned  and  walked  on  towards  the 
house. 

Sherwin  watched  him  out  of  sight,  then  he 
walked  to  the  place  where  the  man  and  woman 
had  stood.  The  sand  was  darkened  by  the  drip- 
pings from  their  wet  clothes.  With  his  mind  oc- 
cupied with  new  and  conflicting  thoughts  he 
kicked  dry  sand  over  the  place.  Hate  and  lust 
were  now  at  work  to  do  their  worst,  yet  in  his 
heart  there  was  hope  rekindled  and  with  hope 
there  had  come  fear.  When  all  sign  of  the  wet 
footmarks  had  been  obliterated  he  walked  away 
towards  his  own  quarters. 

At  the  door  of  the  house  Alice  Desmond  was 
waiting.  She  came  down  the  steps  of  the  ver- 
andah to  meet  the  doctor.  ^'What  did  that  brute 
say?*'  she  asked. 

He  looked  at  her  scornfully,  and  without  an- 
swering her  question  he  demanded:  "What  the 
hell  did  you  come  here  for?  You  knew  very  well 
that  you  weren't  wanted." 

Her  face  twitched  emotionally  and  he  thought 
she  was  going  to  cry  again,  but  instead  she  broke 
out  in  supplication. 

"Please,  you  must  not  let  him  touch  me.  Prom- 
ise that  you  will  never  let  him  touch  me.     I  am 


252      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

frightened  of  that  man;  he  is  stronger  and  more 
wicked  than  you  know.  Please,  please,  never  let 
him  come  near  me." 

Hicksey  answered  brutally:  "You  knew  he 
was  here,  why  did  you  insist  on  coming?"  Then, 
exasperated,  he  raged  at  her:  "Why,  why  did 
you  come?" 

She  snatched  at  his  hand  and  dropped  on  her 
knees.  "Forgive  me,  forgive  me  once  more. 
Tell  me  to  do  anything  but  leave  you,  and  prom- 
ise that  you  will  never  leave  me  to  that  man. 
Promise,  promise ! " 

"Yes.  I'll  make  him  keep  his  distance — the 
hound.  Now  get  up.  Don't  cry ;  there's  no  need 
for  that.  Show  your  obedience  by  doing  as  you 
are  told.     Go  to  your  room.     I  want  to  be  alone." 

He  pulled  her  to  her  feet  and  she  stood  looking 
at  him  with  entreaty  in  her  eyes.  In  a  broken 
voice  she  pleaded:  "Why  do  you  hate  me 
so?" 

"Because  I  see  too  much  of  you.  If  I  saw  less 
of  you  I  should  like  you  better ;  and  I  should  like 
you  best  of  all  if  you  had  stayed  on  Fenton  Is- 
land." 

He  walked  into  the  house,  and  as  he  passed  her 
she  began  to  whimper,  trying  hard  to  restrain  the 
rising  sobs.  She  followed,  keeping  at  a  short  dis- 
tance behind  him.     In  his  room  he  turned  and 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   253 

was  about  to  abuse  her  once  more  for  her  impor- 
tunate fidelity  when  the  conviction  came  to  him 
that  no  matter  what  he  said  she  would  always  fol- 
low, always  look  with  those  large  reproachful 
eyes,  always  offer  what  he  didn't  wish  to  accept 
and  call  upon  his  pity.  Like  a  petulant  child  he 
sat  down  with  his  back  to  her.  She  stood  some- 
where behind  him,  and  he  knew  that  her  eyes  were 
following  his  least  movement.  Then,  after  a  few 
minutes,  his  irritation  became  so  acute  that  he 
could  sit  still  no  longer.  He  rose  and  pretended 
to  occupy  himself  with  small  employments.  With 
difficulty  he  restrained  himself  from  rushing  at 
her  and  hurling  her  from  the  room.  Must  he  al- 
ways be  persecuted  by  this  intolerable  vigilance? 
Cut  off  as  he  was  from  his  fellows  and  from  all 
the  interest  of  his  work,  might  he  not  even  taste 
the  solace  of  being  alone?  At  all  cost  he  must 
and  would  escape  her,  and  for  a  time  at  least  free 
himself  from  the  consciousness  of  her  existence. 
He  went  to  one  of  the  cupboards  in  which  he  kept 
drugs.  In  a  kind  of  nervous  stupidity  she 
watched  what  he  was  doing.  He  mixed  a  sleep- 
ing draught  sufficiently  strong  to  make  him  sleep 
for  several  hours. 

How  and  where  he  fell  asleep  he  could  not  re- 
member, but  his  last  consciousness  was  of  soft 
arras  that  encircled  him  and  eyes  that  looked 


254      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

anxiously  into  his  own.  From  early  that  evening 
he  slept  till  late  the  next  morning,  and  Alice  Des- 
mond watched  jealously  his  relaxed  features.  He 
had  found  for  a  time  oblivion  and  escape.  As 
she  looked  at  his  sleeping  face  she  seemed  to  see, 
as  she  had  never  seen  before,  into  his  inmost  self. 
It  was  as  if  in  sudden  revelation  sleep  betrayed  the 
failure  of  life.  She  saw,  as  she  watched  through 
the  long  hours  of  the  night,  characters  and  sug- 
gestions of  qualities  that  she  had  never  before 
seen.  There  was  something  so  powerless  and  con- 
temptible about  his  drugged  sleep  that  for  sting- 
ing moments  her  love  flashed  into  hate.  How 
could  so  weak  a  shadow  of  a  man  be  able  to  inflict 
pain?  If  he  were  never  to  wake,  then  perhaps 
might  her  suffering  be  assuaged.  For  a  time  she 
almost  wished  he  were  dead,  for  then  she  could 
love  his  memory,  which  could  be  kind,  not  like  the 
unmouldable,  hard  reality  of  his  waking  self ;  be- 
sides, if  ever  man  deserved  to  die,  he  who  had  so 
cruelly  cast  her  aside  deserved  death.  Then, 
frightened  at  the  thought  of  her  own  forlorn  state, 
she  wished  that  he  might  wake,  if  it  were  only  to 
curse  at  her.  If  he  were  to  die  in  his  sleep  how 
terribly  situated  she  would  be !  She  clutched  and 
shook  the  sleeping  form,  but  he  did  not  wake,  only 
murmured  from  an  open  mouth. 

Late  in  the  ixight  she  must  have  fallen  asleep, 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   255 

and  on  waking  she  found  the  sunlight  streaming 
into  the  room.  Her  immediate  fear  was,  that  if 
the  doctor  did  not  make  an  appearance  Sherwin 
might  come  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  After 
much  shaking  he  opened  his  eyes.  As  she  looked 
into  them  she  saw  consciousness  slowly  creeping 
back,  and  with  it  came  a  look  of  aversion  towards 
herself.  He  drew  free  from  her  hands  and  asked 
what  time  it  was.  She  told  him  that  it  was  late, 
and  he  seemed  annoyed  at  having  slept  so  long. 
For  a  time  he  moved  about  the  room  in  a  fuddled 
and  drowsy  way,  but  then  once  more  the  force  of 
habit  showed  its  strength.  While  he  yet  lived  he 
must  work,  work  although  there  was  no  hope,  no 
prospect  beyond  tke  day.  But  how  could  he  work 
in  that  drowsy  state? 

Again  he  went  to  the  medicine  chest.  This  time 
he  took  some  tabloids  of  strychnin;  that  would 
pull  him  together  and  counteract  the  effect  of  the 
bromide.  She  watched  him  anxiously,  never 
leaving  his  side  for  an  instant. 

While  he  had  been  moving  about  the  room  he 
had  uttered  no  articulate  words,  but  when  at 
length  he  spoke  to  her,  it  was  in  a  tone  more  like 
that  of  his  old  self  than  anything  she  had  heard 
for  some  days.  He  told  her  that  he  was  going  to 
work  at  the  hospital  during  the  morning,  but 
would  come  back  to  lunch  at  midday.    She  was 


256      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

to  have  lunch  ready  for  him  and  he  would  be  back 
at  twelve  o'clock. 

There  was  something  so  everyday  and  con- 
trolled about  his  manner  that  it  took  her  by  sur- 
prise, and  she  found  it  difficult  to  insist  on  coming 
with  him,  but  instead  walked  with  him  a  few 
paces  out  into  the  brilliant  sunlight  and  then  stood 
watching  his  figure  climb  the  high  sand-hill  and 
finally  disappear  over  its  edge. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

WHEN  Sherwin  returned  to  his  home, 
he  was  restless  and  excited.  For  a 
while  he  stood  on  the  steps  contem- 
plating the  white  expanse  of  the  sand-dunes  and 
the  flat  surface  of  the  sea  glimmering  blue  and 
purple  in  the  afternoon  light.  He  was  annoyed 
at  again  letting  the  doctor  have  the  last  word. 
Well,  his  turn  would  come;  he  would  make  sure 
of  that.  He  went  into  his  room,  opened  a  bottle 
of  whisky,  and  took  a  gulp  of  the  raw  spirit. 
This  was  the  stuff  to  hearten  a  man,  and  what  he 
wanted  was  courage,  courage  to  meet  the  wiry,  hot- 
tempered  man  who  so  often  mastered  him.  If  the 
fellow  couldn't  see  sense,  then  he  could  teach  him  a 
lesson.  In  a  short  time  the  morose  mood  that  he 
had  fallen  into  passed,  and  he  called  to  Coffee. 
It  was  not  his  custom  to  let  Coffee  drink  whisky, 
as  he  knew  the  violent  effect  that  it  had ;  but  for 
once  in  a  way  he  thought  it  would  be  fun  to  make 
the  black  fellow  drunk.  "Come  here,  Coffee; 
come  and  sit  down,  you  black-limbed  image,"  he 
shouted;  "put  some  of  that  inside  your  ugly 
face." 

257 


258       WHERE    BONDS    ARE    LOOSED 

Coffee  needed  no  second  bidding,  for,  like  all 
natives,  he  took  it  as  an  honour  to  drink  the  white 
man's  drink.  Sherwin  filled  up  his  glass  as  soon 
as  it  was  empty. 

The  cheaply  built,  wooden  room  in  which  they 
sat  was  bare  save  for  the  table  and  some  wooden 
chairs.  On  the  floor  were  scattered  papers  and 
magazines  in  all  stages  of  disintegration,  and  here 
and  there  on  the  walls  were  nailed  up  coloured 
plates  and  advertisements.  There  was  no  other 
attempt  at  furniture  or  decoration.  The  two  men 
sat  on  opposite  sides  of  the  table  with  the  drink 
between  them.  Sherwin  talked  incessantly,  chaff- 
ing his  companion  and  exhorting  him  to  drink. 
For  a  while  the  black  was  taciturn  and  answered 
in  grunts  and  monosyllables,  but  gradually  his 
eyes  became  bloodshot,  and  the  veins  on  his 
temples  swelled  and  stood  out.  Then  as  the 
liquor  told  on  him,  he  began  to  sing  native  songs. 
At  first  Sherwin  was  pleased,  but  as  the  black  be- 
came almost  mad  with  excitement  he  told  him  to 
shut  up,  but  Coffee  sang  on  louder  than  ever.  By 
this  time  he  was  rocking  to  and  fro  on  his  chair 
and  shouting  in  his  native  tongue. 

''Stop  that  row,  do  you  hear?"  yelled  Sherwin. 

The  black  took  no  notice  beyond  showing  his 
teeth  and  shouting  even  louder  his  barbaric  cries. 

Sherwin  rose  and  struck  at  him.     In  an  instant 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   259 

all  the  ancestral  savagery  of  the  black  man  showed 
itself  and  he  struck  back,  a  thing  he  never  would 
have  dared  to  do  when  he  was  sober.  This  was 
all  that  was  needed  to  make  Sherwin  wild  with 
rage.  He  went  in  with  both  fists,  and  in  less  than 
a  minute  had  knocked  Coffee  an  unconscious  heap 
into  one  of  the  corners  of  the  room.  For  a  while 
he  kicked  at  his  fallen  adversary.  By  God,  he 
was  the  man  to  fight !  Why,  he  could  do  for  that 
little  whipper-snapper  of  a  doctor  with  one  hand. 
No  fear  about  that!  It  was  high  time,  he 
thought,  to  give  the  fellow  a  lesson. 

Seeing  that  there  was  no  more  resistance  in  Cof- 
fee he  went  to  the  table  and  filled  his  flask  with 
spirit,  then  he  set  out  in  the  direction  of  the  doc- 
tor's house.  With  uneven  steps  he  walked  along 
the  track.  Before  he  had  gone  far,  he  found  the 
ascent  of  the  sand-hill  very  steep.  Instead  of 
keeping  to  the  path  he  struck  off  obliquely.  The 
sand  slipped  from  under  his  feet,  and  in  the  steep 
places  he  stumbled.  Before  reaching  the  top  of 
the  hill,  there  came  on  him  an  overwhelming  de- 
sire to  rest.  He  thought  he  would  lie  dow^n  for 
a  few  minutes.  As  the  white  sand  gave  under  his 
weight  he  sprawled  to  full  length.  His  head  was 
just  on  the  level  with  a  small  bush  and  he  became 
curiously  and  attentively  interested  in  its  branches. 
He  lay  still  watching  the  patterns  that  their  dark 


26o      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

outlines  made  upon  the  blue  sea  beyond.  He 
noticed,  at  the  same  time,  swelling  and  diminish- 
ing specks  that  glided  between  the  branches  and 
seemed  to  stir  the  sea  into  an  uneven  motion. 
These  specks  he  could  never  quite  focus;  they 
mingled  together,  and  then  swam  apart,  and  at  last 
the  shapes  of  branches  became  dim,  and  he  slept. 

When  he  next  opened  his  eyes  the  sun  was  shin- 
ing from  the  ever  unclouded  sky,  and  in  his  ears 
was  the  buzz  of  insects'  wings.  For  a  short  space 
he  wondered  where  he  was,  then  remembrance 
came  back.  His  head  felt  very  heavy,  and  for  a 
while  he  lay  still  gazing  vacantly  across  the 
smooth  uneven  surface  of  the  dunes. 

The  place  in  which  he  lay  was  sheltered  by  thick 
bushes,  but  he  could  see  between  their  branches 
the  path  that  joined  the  two  houses.  Presently 
along  the  path  he  saw  Hicksey  walk  with  his  char- 
acteristic quick  step,  with  eyes  fixed  on  the  sand. 
The  sight  of  his  enemy  quickened  his  senses  and 
sent  thoughts  to  his  dull  and  heavy  head.  He  sat 
up  and  watched  the  doctor  out  of  sight;  then  he 
took  a  draught  of  the  raw  spirit;  this  made  him 
feel  better,  and  gradually  a  glow  of  excitement 
spread  through  his  body.  For  a  while  he  sat 
still  thinking  of  many  plans,  plans  that  started 
with  the  acceptance  of  vague  possibilities  and  left 
off  in  nebulous  uncertainty.     He  wished  to  per- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   261 

suade  himself  that  he  was  not  afraid  of  the  doctor, 
whereas  he  knew  that  he  was  afraid.  Well,  time 
would  show,  and  at  all  costs  he  would  make  a  bid 
for  mastery.  He  stood  up  and  took  another  short 
pull  at  the  flask ;  then  he  set  out  towards  the  doc- 
tor's house.  Of  what  he  intended  he  had  no 
clear  idea,  but  it  would  be  more  to  his  liking  to 
talk  with  the  woman  than  risk  an  interview  with 
her  master. 

As  Sherwin  approached  the  lonely  corrugated- 
iron  building,  that  stood  squat  and  blue  in  the  sun- 
light, he  was  oppressed  by  the  silence  in  the  air, 
which  hung  like  a  muffling  and  protecting  cloud 
over  the  earth.  Such  stillness  he  had  not  noticed 
before  and  it  made  him  nervous,  and  yet  he  was 
afraid  lest  there  should  be  any  sudden  noise. 
The  white  sunlight  alarmed  him  in  that  it  seemed 
not  only  to  reveal  his  own  deep  buried  thoughts, 
but  to  lay  bare  the  future,  so  that  he  saw  the  in- 
exorable sequence  of  man's  actions,  but  yet  could 
neither  pause  nor  draw  back.  As  he  mounted  the 
steps  they  creaked  loudly  beneath  his  weight;  the 
noise  made  him  hurry  and  push  on  into  the  room. 

He  felt  as  if  he  were  wound  up  to  action  at  any 
cost  and  nothing  now  could  stop  him.  He  had 
expected  to  surprise  Alice  Desmond  at  some 
household  task,  or  perhaps  to  find  her  reading,  but 
when  he  opened  the  door,  he  saw  in  an  instant  that 


262      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

she  had  heard  his  approach,  and  he  was  flattered 
to  see  that  she  was  waiting  in  terror  and  suspense 
to  learn  what  he  might  do.  She  was  standing  up- 
right at  the  far  side  of  the  room,  her  back  against 
the  dresser,  her  head  thrown  back,  and  her  breasts 
rising  as  her  breath  came  quick  and  short.  Her 
eyes  were  fixed  in  mortal  dread  on  his  face,  the 
dread  of  some  animal  that  is  cornered  and  knows 
no  way  of  escape.  For  a  few  seconds  he  looked  at 
her  with  surprised  admiration.  What  a  fool  that 
doctor  was,  he  thought,  not  to  know  a  good  thing 
when  he  had  got  it.  He  spoke  in  a  forced,  rather 
jocular  voice.  He  was  always  jocular  when  he 
was  nervous.  "I  just  looked  in  to  pass  the  time 
of  day  with  you.  Miss  Desmond.  We  neither  of 
us  get  too  much  company  on  this  island — and 
thinking  you  might  be  alone,"  he  paused  for  a  sec- 
ond, ''I  just  looked  in." 

Once  more  the  silence  settled  upon  the  house, 
only  broken  by  the  buzz  of  a  yellow  blow-fly  that 
rattled  against  the  window  pane.  The  woman 
still  regarded  him  from  her  strained  upright  posi- 
tion. 

He  spoke  again;  this  time  his  voice  was  harsh 
and  brutal:  ''Come,  my  darling,  sit  down  and 
talk  to  me.     IVe  not  come  to  murder  you." 

She  moved  to  a  chair  that  he  pointed  at  and 
sat  down.     Then  he  walked  to  the  table  near 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   263 

which  she  sat  and  leaned  across,  so  that  his  red 
face  came  close  to  hers.  "So  he's  tired  of  you,  is 
he?  Given  you  the  chuck  over?  The  damned 
ungrateful  little  rabbit!" 

Her  dark  eyes  glowed  at  him  from  a  pale  face, 
and  her  drawn  lips  moved,  but  no  sound  came 
from  them. 

*'Come,  don't  be  afraid  of  me,"  he  added  in  a 
softened  voice.  "I'm  not  going  to  hurt  you." 
Then,  pulling  a  chair  to  the  table  and  seating  him- 
self opposite  her,  he  went  on  in  a  bantering  tone : 
"He  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  himself  letting  a  lady 
run  through  the  water  after  him,  and  not  so  much 
as  give  her  a  hand." 

As  if  with  difficulty  controlling  her  lips  and 
tongue,  Alice  Desmond  gasped,  "Go  away,  please; 
leave  me  alone." 

"That's  not  very  kind  when  I  come  up  on  pur- 
pose to  talk  to  you.  Come,  out  with  it;  what  have 
you  against  me?     Ain't  I  as  good  a  man  as  him?" 

The  woman  suddenly  bent  forward  on  the  table 
shaken  and  choking  with  sobs.  The  humiliation 
of  her  position  came  with  irresistible  force ;  it  was 
shameful  that  the  man  she  loved  should  leave  her 
exposed  to  such  insults.  Then  her  anger  rose 
against  the  doctor  even  more  hotly  than  against 
Sherwin. 

For  a  while  the  man  watched  her  and  said  noth- 


264      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

ing.  Her  shaking  body  seemed  impotent  to  ex- 
press the  fierceness  of  her  grief.  Then,  after  a 
few  minutes,  when  her  sobs  seemed  not  so  violent, 
he  spoke,  this  time  in  a  kindly  tone:  *'Don't 
take  it  so  hard,  my  dear."  He  had  for  her  at  that 
moment  genuine  pity,  and  now  that  he  felt  that 
she  was  in  such  direct  opposition,  his  instinct  was 
to  soften.  ^'Don't  take  it  so  hard;  I  didn't  mean 
to  hurt  you  like  that." 

"Oh!  leave  me!  leave  me!"  she  cried.  "He's 
treated  me  shamefully.     Leave  me  alone  1 " 

"Don't  take  on  so  hard,"  repeated  the  man. 
"You  had  much  better  leave  him,  and  let  him  rot. 
If  you  come  with  me  I'll  marry  you  fair,  and  that's 
treating  you  handsome  seeing  the  way  you  and 
him  have  been." 

The  woman  looked  up  surprised  and  desperate. 
"I  wish  I  were  dead  and  I  wish  he  were  dead  too. 
Oh!  if  only  I  could  make  him  feel."  Half  glad 
at  Sherwin's  sympathy,  she  was  relieved  to  have 
some  one  to  speak  to.  "If  I  had  the  courage  I 
would  kill  him  and  then  myself." 

For  a  while  neither  of  them  spoke,  and  the  yel- 
low fly  could  be  heard  buzzing  aimlessly  up  and 
down  the  window. 

"Don't  take  on  so,"  said  the  man  as  he  rose 
from  his  chair,  "but  stay  here  quiet  and  I'll  come 
back  in  half  an  hour." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   265 

She  jumped  up.  "Where  are  you  going  to, 
what  are  you  going  to  do?  Stop,  I  won't  let  you 
go  like  that!  You're  not  to  hurt  him.  You're 
not  to  touch  him,  do  you  hear?"  She  seized  him 
by  the  arm. 

"Who  said  I  was  going  to  hurt  him?"  growled 
the  man,  pushing  his  way  towards  the  door. 

With  both  her  arms  she  held  him. 

With  small  effort  he  freed  himself,  but  still  held 
her  hands  in  his  Then  with  a  sudden  movement 
he  drew  her  to  him  and  held  her  in  a  close 
embrace.  She  stood  motionless,  making  no  re- 
sistance, but  letting  his  kisses  fall  on  her  white 
face. 

Then  of  a  sudden  the  woman  screamed,  and 
thrust  herself  free.  A  step  was  heard  coming  up 
the  stair  on  to  the  verandah.  Sherwin  turned  with 
an  oath  and  faced  the  door,  at  which,  in  the  next 
second,  Hicksey  appeared.  The  doctor's  face  was 
drawn  and  excited.  For  some  moments  he  looked 
from  one  to  the  other,  then  he  laughed;  but  his 
laugh  he  suddenly  cut  short  and  turned  fiercely  on 
Sherwin.  "What  are  you  doing  here?  Didn't  I 
tell  you  to  keep  your  distance?  What  do  you 
mean  by  skulking  up  here  behind  my  back  and 
frightening  women?  Where  were  you  lurking 
that  you  .']^ot  here  without  my  seeing  you?" 

"Don't  think  I'm  afraid  of  you,"  growled  Sher- 


266      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

win;  "I'll  soon  show  you  if  I'm  to  be  bullied. 
I'm  not  afraid  of  the  likes  of  you." 

Hicksey  came  forward  into  the  room.  "Do  you 
see  that  door?  Well,  get  out  of  it  quick,  and  if  I 
see  you  here  again  or  anywhere  about  I'll  put  a 
bullet  in  you." 

"Get  out  yourself,"  roared  Sherwin.  "I'm  not 
afraid  of  you.  Perhaps  you'd  better  report  me  to 
the  Government  than  talk  so  high  about  bullets." 
He  stepped  across  the  room  and  grabbed  at  Nurse 
Desmond.    "If  I  go  I'll  take  the  woman  with  me." 

Nurse  Desmond,  however,  avoided  his  grasp 
and  ran  to  where  the  doctor  stood;  the  two  men 
faced  one  another,  the  one  red-headed,  broad  and 
tall;  the  other  slight  and  wiry  and  pale. 

"Get  out  quick  or  it  will  be  the  worse  for  you," 
said  Hicksey  in  a  voice  that  was  kept  under  con- 
trol, but  which  betrayed  his  intense  and  gathered 
excitement. 

"The  worse  for  me! "  mocked  Sherwin.  "You 
bloody  white-faced  little  Wesleyan !  you've  got  no 

power  to  make  me  go.     You "     He  stopped 

abruptly  in  mid-speech.  The  colour  had  sud- 
denly left  his  red  face;  he  had  gone  white  even 
to  the  lips. 

Hicksey  had  put  his  right  hand  behind  his  back 
and  kept  it  there.  "Get  out  quick  and  thank  your 
stars  you  walk  on  your  own  feet ! " 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   267 

Sherwin,  the  fight  suddenly  gone  out  of  him, 
walked  sullenly  to  the  door.  When  he  reached  it, 
he  almost  tumbled  through  in  his  haste  to  be  off ; 
then  he  hurried  down  the  steps  and  away  across 
the  sand-hills. 

Hicksey  watched  him  out  of  sight,  then  turned 
to  the  woman  and  laughed.  "The  man's  a  blus- 
tering coward.  Look — "  he  held  out  his  empty 
right  hand,  "he  thought  I  was  going  to  shoot." 
His  face  twitched  uncontrollably,  for  he  had  taken 
a  large  dose  of  strychnin  and  he  was  stimulated 
to  an  unnatural  pitch  of  emotion.  "What  was 
the  fellow  up  to?  How  long  had  he  been  here?" 
he  demanded. 

"Not  long.  Be  careful  of  him."  The  woman 
seemed  dazed.  Then,  as  if  understanding  and 
volition  had  urgently  come  back,  she  spoke  with 
quick  intensity:  "He's  dangerous;  he  means 
killing.     He  told  me  so." 

"Told  you  so?  what  do  you  mean?" 

"Yes,  he  told  me  so.  Oh,  my  God,  it's  all  my 
fault";  and  then,  flinging  herself  on  the  doctor 
and  clinging  to  him:     "Forgive  me,  forgive  me." 

"Forgive  me,  what  do  you  mean?  What's  the 
fellow  up  to?" 

"Don't  hold  me  so  tight."  He  held  her  from 
him,  and  looking  fiercely  in  her  eyes  he  de- 
manded:    "What  is  there  between  you?" 


268      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

^'No,  no,  no,  there's  nothing;  but  he  means  kill- 
ing. I  saw  it  in  his  face.  He's  desperate." 
Then  as  if  springing  to  new  hopes  she  shouted: 
*'Get  your  gun  quick  and  kill  him  before  he  has 
time  to  get  his.  It's  one  or  the  other  of  you.  For 
once  you  must  believe  me." 

Her  words  and  manner  carried  instant  convic- 
tion, besides,  he  remembered  the  look  on  the  fel- 
low's sulky  face  as  he  had  passed  out  of  the  door, 
and  with  that  remembrance  an  unexpected  gust  of 
fear  blew  upon  his  heart.  Yes,  the  man  meant 
killing,  and  in  a  duel  like  this  he  would  have  to  be 
quick  if  he  meant  to  save  his  own  life.  '^I  believe 
you  are  right,"  he  said.  "Quick,  let  me  go; 
there's  no  time  to  lose." 

In  the  next  room  he  found  his  rifle  and  slipped 
a  couple  of  handfuls  of  cartridges  into  his  pocket. 
Then  he  opened  the  magazine  and  filled  it.  The 
woman,  who  had  followed,  watched  narrowly  all 
his  movements.  His  heart  was  beating  wildly, 
and  there  was  no  denying  that  he  was  very  nerv- 
ous. "I  must  get  away  quickly  among  the 
dunes,"  he  said.  "If  he  comes  back  and  finds 
me  in  the  house  he'll  have  me  at  his  mercy." 

"But  where  am  I  to  go?"  faltered  the  woman. 
"Don't  leave  me  alone,  for  God's  sake,  don't  leave 
me  alone." 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   269 

"What?  You  can't  come  with  me.  I  must 
move  quickly  to  get  a  shot  at  him  somewhere 
among  the  dunes.  You  must  stay  here.  I'll 
watch  the  house  and  not  let  him  come  near." 

She  clung  to  him.  "God  protect  you,"  she 
wailed.     "Come  back  soon." 

"I'll  come  as  soon  as  I  can;  here,  let  me  go." 

"Give  me  a  kiss  first.  Forgive  me  if  it  is  all 
my  fault." 

"Oh,  damn ! "  He  gave  her  a  perfunctory  kiss. 
He  opened  the  door  gingerly  and  looked  nervously 
along  the  path,  then  ran  towards  the  high  ground 
at  the  back  of  the  house  and  disappeared  amongst 
the  sand-dunes. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  high  sand-dune  that  stood  between  the 
two  houses  was  an  outlying  spur  to  the 
main  ridges  which  formed  the  back-bone 
of  the  island  and  which  ran  in  long  lines  north 
and  south.  In  one  of  the  gullies  of  these  inland 
dunes  Hicksey  paused  for  rest  and  breathing  time. 
Here  he  was  secure  from  immediate  danger,  and 
here  he  must  make  a  plan  of  action.  Looking 
round,  he  could  see  nothing  but  the  sky  and  the 
soft  undulating  sand,  and  here  and  there  dwarfed 
xerophytic  plants  that  sent  long  roots  down  into 
the  dry  and  crumbling  soil.  He  looked  anxiously 
towards  the  crests  of  the  higher  dunes  that  over- 
looked his  position.  No  it  was  not  probable  that 
Sherwin  would  have  yet  reached  the  high  land. 
He  was  most  likely,  thought  Hicksey,  to  creep 
round  the  big  dune  and,  then  from  some  safe  posi- 
tion lie  watching  the  house.  In  that  case  Hick- 
sey, by  keeping  high  on  the  main  ridge,  would  be 
likely  to  surprise  him.  He  started  to  run  forward 
among  the  hills,  crouching  low  and  taking  care 

never  to  appear  on  the  skyline.     In  a  few  minutes 

270 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   271 

he  reached  a  high  crest  that  commanded  a  view  of 
the  house  and  an  oblique  elevation  of  the  dune 
round  which  Sherwin  must  approach.  He  then 
lay  down  and  waited. 

The  day  was  one  of  supreme  stillness  and  peace. 
The  sun,  high  overhead,  fiercely  flung  down  its 
rays  upon  the  white  surface  of  the  earth,  that  in  a 
shimmer  of  heat  trembled  beneath  its  blows.  In 
the  distance  the  sea  and  sky  mingled  in  a  brilliant 
sapphire;  not  a  cloud  was  to  be  seen,  not  a  breath 
stirred.  From  the  house  there  came  not  a  sound. 
Close  at  hand  a  sandwasp  delved  busily.  Hick- 
sey  watched  its  sudden  and  impetuous  movements. 
With  every  quick  lifting  of  the  wings  it  expressed 
the  joy  and  the  ecstasy  of  life.  A  creature  fash- 
ioned to  live  in  the  bright  sunlight.  Dissatisfied 
with  the  hole  it  had  so  valiantly  commenced,  it 
flitted  from  place  to  place.  Of  a  sudden,  it  fell 
dead  and  brittle  upon  the  sand.  Passing  over 
some  hollow  that  caught  and  reflected  too  fiercely 
the  sun's  rays,  it  had  died  of  the  sudden  heat, 
which  had  by  an  accident  of  circumstance  concen- 
trated upon  one  place.  Hicksey  picked  up  its 
brittle  body,  looked  at  it  for  a  moment,  threw  it 
aside,  and  fixed  his  eyes  once  more  on  the  face  of 
the  opposite  hill. 

He  had  not  been  waiting  more  than  ten  minutes 
when  he  saw  Sherwin's  head  raised  cautiously 


272      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

above  the  outline  of  the  dune.  In  his  hand  was  a 
rifle.  Hicksey  watched  him  settle  himself  down 
in  a  position  commanding  a  good  view  of  the 
house.  Now  was  his  chance ;  the  man  was  armed 
and  intent  on  murder.  He  was  justified  in  taking 
the  first  shot.  He  put  up  his  sight  to  four  hun- 
dred yards.  The  range  was  an  easy  one;  there 
should  be  no  question  of  a  miss.  As  he  brought 
the  butt  of  the  rifle  to  his  shoulder  his  hands  were 
shaking.  The  overdose  of  strychnine  that  he  had 
taken  still  kept  his  muscles  twitching.  He  took 
aim  just  below  the  head ;  with  so  much  heat  radia- 
tion he  must  allow  for  refraction. 

The  crack  of  the  rifle  sounded  intensely  loud  in 
the  stillness.  A  white  spat  of  sand  flew  up  in 
Sherwin's  face. 

Hicksey  raised  himself  rigid  on  his  fore-arms 
for  a  better  view.  A  miss — incredible!  The 
next  instant  Sherwin  had  rolled  into  safety  behind 
the  ridge  of  the  hill. 

Following  upon  the  shot  came  a  short  dumb 
silence.  Then  from  the  house  a  long-drawn 
scream,  a  scream  desperate  and  heartrending,  ugly 
and  pathetic,  that  clove  the  still  air  and  filled  the 
hearts  of  the  two  listeners  with  sickening  dread, 
with  breathless  fear,  fear  at  the  sudden  knowledge 
that  the  less  than  human  in  our  nature  had  broken 
loose  and  had  escaped  control.    With  a  choking 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   273 

gasp  the  scream  changed  to  the  long  irregular  out- 
break of  hysterics.  The  sound  rose  and  fell,  now 
gathering  to  desperate  and  passionate  convulsions, 
now  dying  away  to  a.  hopeless  and  despairing 
chuckle.  The  inconsequent  irregular  stream  of 
sound,  now  thinly  pathetic,  now  raucous  and 
threatening,  turned  upon  itself,  broke,  and  recov- 
ered. Human  control  had  snapped  and  the  cruel 
and  senseless  insistence  of  life  ran  on  over  deeps 
and  shallows,  eloquent  of  all  the  fear  that  lies  hid 
in  the  heart  of  man. 

For  only  an  instant  was  Hicksey  held  by  the 
sound,  then  he  leapt  back  into  safety.  For  some 
moments  he  lay  still  in  the  soft  hollow  of  the 
dunes.  He  must  think  of  a  plan,  some  definite 
plan  of  attack.  The  idea  pulsed  through  his  head 
and  became  strangely  tangled  with  the  screams  of 
the  woman  and  with  recollections  of  his  earlier 
life  on  the  island.  His  ideas  came  with  great 
vividness,  one  on  the  heels  of  another.  A  press  of 
sensations,  varied  and  unrelated,  raced  through 
his  brain,  one  close  upon  the  other,  like  stars  fall- 
ing through  space,  leaving  no  track,  and  ever  re- 
curring the  thought  came  that  he  must  take  action 
immediate  and  ruthless.  Then  close  on  the 
thought  would  come  fear  for  his  life,  and  fear 
at  the  woman  whose  screams  rang  in  his  ears.  He 
stood  up,  perhaps  he  could  think  more  coherently 


274      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

standing  than  lying.  Yes,  if  he  valued  his  life 
he  must  get  a  clear  view  of  his  situation,  make 
some  sort  of  mental  picture  of  the  island,  must 
take  bearings  from  the  sun,  for  it  was  easy  enough 
to  get  lost  amongst  the  high  inland  sand-hills. 
To  the  west,  that  was  on  his  immediate  right,  was 
his  house,  a  little  north  of  that  was  Sherwin's 
house,  and  beyond  that  again  was  the  hospital. 
These  buildings  were  all  backed  by  a  high  ridge  of 
dunes.  Beyond  this  ridge  was  a  flat  and  open 
space,  part  of  which  was  used  as  a  burying-ground 
for  dead  natives.  Then  again  to  the  eastward 
of  this  plain  rose  irregularly  shaped  hills  that  in 
billowy  rises  extended  to  the  coast.  He  decided 
to  keep  amongst  these  hills,  and  hoped  to  get  an- 
other shot  at  Sherwin  across  the  open  space  of  the 
burying-ground.  He  set  off  at  a  run,  intending 
to  make  a  wide  sweep  and  come  round  behind 
some  high  crests  that  overlooked  the  burying- 
ground. 

After  he  had  jerked  himself  behind  the  shelter- 
ing edge  of  the  hill,  it  took  Sherwin  some  few 
seconds  to  gather  his  wits  about  him.  He  was 
surprised  and  rather  dazed  by  this  sudden  and 
uncompromising  way  of  being  informed  that  the 
doctor  had  already  taken  alarm.  Instead  of  the 
safe  though  exciting  occupation  of  waiting  for  the 
opportunity  of  a  shot,  he  must  engage  in  a  stalk 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   275 

among  the  sand-hills  and  play  the  part  of  quarry 
as  well  as  huntsman.  For  one  heart's  beat  he 
felt  afraid,  but  that  passed  in  a  moment.  Now 
that  it  was  a  matter  of  life  and  death,  and  there 
was  no  possibility  of  drawing  back,  he  felt  no  fear, 
but  only  mad  and  blinding  rage.  He  had  even 
a  rash  impulse  to  approach  openly,  to  take  all 
risks  and  at  any  rate  settle  the  matter  out  of  hand. 
His  was  the  rage  of  a  wild  beast  threatened  and 
roused,  and  to  augment  his  natural  ferocity  he 
was  irritated  by  the  screams  that  came  from  the 
house.  Such  sounds  were  an  outrage  on  the  day- 
light ;  they  played  on  his  strung  nerves  urging  him 
to  immediate  action.  Gripping  his  rifle  he  started 
to  run  from  one  sand-hill  to  another.  Each  rise 
he  came  to  he  peered  over,  hoping  for  a  sight  of 
the  doctor.  In  a  short  while  he  came  to  the  place 
where  Hicksey  had  crouched  waiting  for  his  shot. 
He  marked  the  footsteps  leading  away  toward  the 
centre  of  the  island.'  At  this  sign  of  his  adver- 
sary's caution  he  became  in  his  turn  more  cautious, 
and  judged  it  would  be  rash  to  follow  too  closely. 
He  decided  to  keep  to  the  cover  of  the  hills  and  try 
for  a  long  shot  across  the  open. 

All  through  the  long  hours  of  the  midday  and 
afternoon  the  two  men  hunted  one  another,  crouch- 
ing and  dodging  among  the  sand-hills.  Once  or 
twice  they  got  a  sight  of  a  running  figure  that 


276      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

quickly  found  cover  before  there  was  time  for  a 
shot.  This  seemed  to  be  a  struggle  which  en- 
durance rather  than  any  other  human  quality  must 
decide.  By  this  time  they  had  led  each  other 
some  distance  from  the  house,  and  the  far-distant 
cries  had  at  length  ceased.  The  quiet  of  the  even- 
ing hung  over  the  island,  and  in  the  south-west 
the  sun  was  sinking  into  the  sea.  Both  men, 
weary  and  parched  with  thirst,  knew  that  between 
them  no  truce  was  possible.  The  instinct  for  kill- 
ing was  aroused  and  could  not  now  be  checked. 

It  was  not  till  after  sunset  that  Sherwin,  as  he 
ran  from  one  clump  of  bushes  to  another,  hap- 
pened to  notice  a  small  hut  that  stood  near  the 
burying-ground,  which  was  occasionally  used  for 
post-mortem  examinations.  He  suddenly  realized 
that  this  would  be  a  good  hiding-place  and  that 
Hicksey  would  never  suspect  him  of  being  in  it. 
Besides  being  a  good  place  of  shelter,  it  was  an 
excellent  post  of  observation,  since  it  faced  on  to 
the  open,  and  he  would  be  able  to  see  if  Hicksey 
attempted  to  get  back  to  the  houses.  He  quickly 
stepped  inside  and  stood  close  against  the  back 
wall  so  as  to  be  better  concealed.  He  was  very 
tired  and  glad  of  a  rest;  after  a  while  he  became 
sleepy  and  dozed,  letting  his  head  fall  back  and 
rest  against  the  iron  wall  of  the  hut. 

Not  half  an  hour  later  Hicksey  passed  by  on  the 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   277 

opposite  side  of  the  hut;  the  same  idea  entered  his 
head  as  had  entered  Sherwin's.  He  would  hide  in 
the  hut,  from  which  he  could  get  an  excellent  op- 
portunity of  a  shot.  He  approached  very  quickly, 
then,  since  the  last  few  yards  were  across  exposed 
ground,  he  ran  and  quickly  whisked  into  the  dark 
interior  of  the  hut. 

At  the  same  instant,  as  he  became  conscious  of 
stumbling  over  Sherwin's  feet,  a  gun  went  off  close 
to  his  head  and  a  bullet  tore  its  way  through  the 
roof.  Close  on  the  report  came  a  roar  of  surprise 
and  fear.  For  the  first  few  moments  both  men 
were  alarmed  and  clumsy  in  their  actions,  each 
thinking  himself  the  attacked  party.  Face  to 
face,  they  were  at  such  close  quarters  that  this  was 
no  place  for  rifles.  They  dropped  their  weapons 
and  grappled  with  one  another.  Sherwin  in  his 
first  surprise  had  let  off  his  rifle  at  random,  and 
then,  seeing  that  the  shot  had  taken  no  effect, 
had  dropped  it  and  had  secured  first  grip  on  the 
doctor.  He  had  his  arms  tight  round  and  was 
trying  to  squeeze  the  breath  out  of  him,  and  at 
the  same  time  was  jerking  him  up  and  down  trying 
to  rick  his  back.  Hicksey,  being  much  the 
smaller  and  lighter  of  the  two,  and  having  his 
arms  gripped  to  his  sides,  found  this  difficult  to 
combat  with.  He  tried  to  work  his  right  hand 
upward  to  a  knife  he  carried  in  his  belt.     The  two 


278      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

men  swayed  to  and  fro,  kicking  at  each  other's 
legs,  and  from  time  to  time  bumping  against  the 
wall  of  the  shed.  Just  when  Hicksey  had  his 
hand  on  the  hilt  of  his  knife  Sherwin  saw  what 
he  was  trying  for.  He  let  go  his  hold  and 
clutched  at  the  doctor's  right  arm  that  swung  up 
for  a  blow.  He  caught  his  wrist  and  held  it. 
Hicksey  tried  to  change  the  knife  from  one  hand 
to  another  and  at  the  same  time  he  kicked  Sher- 
win's  legs  from  under  him.  Both  fell  heavily  on 
to  the  wooden  floor  of  the  hut  and  the  knife  was 
jerked  far  into  a  distant  corner  out  of  reach  of 
either  of  the  men.  Hicksey  being  the  lighter 
and  the  more  agile  made  the  best  of  the  fall. 
Every  ounce  of  him  was  hard  gristle  and  bone, 
and  he  managed  to  twist  himself  on  top  of  his 
adversary  and  for  a  moment  hold  him  down. 
The  next  instant  Sherwin  had  hurled  him  off, 
and  had  rolled  over  towards  the  knife.  By 
this  action  he  seriously  endangered  his  position, 
for  Hicksey  was  at  him  again  at  once,  and 
this  time  managed  to  get  his  back  against  the 
wall  and  his  foot  into  a  crack  in  the  floor,  so  that 
he  could  hold  Sherwin  powerless.  Again  and 
again  Sherwin  tried  to  wrench  himself  free,  but 
the  doctor  had  him  in  a  strong  grip  and  could  not 
be  shaken  off.     The  knife  still  lay  out  of  reach 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   279 

of  either  of  them,  though  the  eyes  of  both  men 
constantly  rested  upon  it. 

Finding  himself  helpless  Sherwin  began  to 
curse,  he  used  every  foul  epithet  which  in  a  fairly 
varied  life  he  had  ever  heard.  Hicksey  kept  his 
lips  tight  together,  and  pressed  the  harder  on  his 
enemy's  wrists.  Although  Hicksey  had  the  upper 
hand,  his  position  was  little  better  than  Sher- 
win's ;  for  if  he  moved  he  would  lose  his  purchase, 
and,  since  he  was  furtlier  from  the  knife,  would 
then  be  at  a  disadvantage.  They  wer6  thus  fixed 
in  a  deadlock;  one  unable,  and  the  other  daring 
not  to  move.  In  their  minds  they  both  argued 
that  something  must  happen,  but  for  the  time  they 
remained  as  they  were,  glaring  at  one  another. 
Their  fate  was,  however,  near  at  hand,  approach- 
ing, hesitating  and  bewildered,  in  the  shape  of  a 
black  and  half-tamed  savage. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  Coffee  had  woken  from 
his  drunken  sleep.  He  had  rubbed  his  bruised 
limbs  and  then  had  looked  about  for  his  master. 
He  saw  no  sign  of  him,  and  there  was  no  sound 
to  tell  where  he  might  be.  He  walked  out  into 
the  rays  of  the  setting  sun.  Sherwin  was  no- 
where in  sight.  Then  he  walked  on  up  the 
sand-hill  and  looked  at  the  doctor's  house.  That 
also  was  silent,  and  he  saw  no  sign  of  any  one 


28o      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

moving.  He  turned  and  walked  toward  the  hos- 
pital. No  one  was  there  either.  He  was 
puzzled;  where  could  the  white  men  have  got  to? 
None  of  the  natives  at  the  camp  or  at  the  hospital 
had  seen  anything  of  them.  He  was  afraid  at  a 
sense  of  the  unusual.  It  was  very  strange  that  he 
should  have  slept  so  late;  no  doubt  something 
equally  strange  had  happened  to  his  white  mas- 
ters. Then  suddenly  he  heard  the  report  of  a 
rifle.  Ah!  they  must  have  gone  out  shooting 
wallabies.  This  explanation  was  reasonable,  but 
it  did  not  make  him  feel  quite  at  ease,  nor  did  it 
banish  his  feeling  of  loneliness  and  desertion. 
Even  though  Sherwin  should  curse  at  him  for  his 
intrusion,  he  would  go  and  see  what  they  were  do- 
ing. He  set  out  in  the  direction  from  which  he 
had  heard  the  report  of  the  rifle.  Before  going 
very  far  he  came  upon  Sherwin's  track.  This  he 
followed,  and  was  surprised  at  the  curious  num- 
ber of  turns  and  zig-zags  it  made.  Why  was  his 
master  walking  in  that  curious  manner  and 
scrambling  up  the  side  of  the  sand-hills,  only  to 
run  down  again?  At  length  he  came  in  sight  of 
the  hut;  then  he  heard  his  master's  voice  very 
angry  indeed,  rising  and  falling  in  familiar  oaths. 
He  hesitated  whether  he  should  go  any  further; 
the  sense  that  something  unusual  was  happening 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   281 

became  stronger;  he  was  afraid,  but  he  was  also 
afraid  to  go  back  past  the  burying-ground  in  the 
gathering  twilight.  In  the  dark  his  imagination 
peopled  the  whole  land  with  ghosts,  and  at  the 
thought  of  those  that  haunted  the  burying-ground 
he  became  still  more  frightened  and  ran  head- 
long towards  the  hut. 

The  sight  that  greeted  him  was  as  alarming  as 
any  conjured  by  his  imagination.  The  two  white 
men  were  dimly  discernible  at  the  far  end  of  the 
hut  crouching  upon  the  ground,  and  his  master 
was  swearing  horribly. 

As  soon  as  Sherwin  caught  sight  of  him  he 
shouted  out:  ''Here,  Coffee,  you've  just  come  at 
the  right  time.     Here,  help  me,  help ! " 

The  black  had  but  the  vaguest  idea  as  to  what 
was  happening;  he  thought  that  perhaps  the  two 
white  men  were  struggling  with  a  ghost,  and  his 
first  instinct  was  to  run  away ;  but  then  there  was 
the  burying-ground  to  be  passed.  On  an  impulse 
he  flung  himself  wildly  forward  to  his  master's 
help. 

Hicksey  leapt  up  and  struck  him  in  the  face, 
and  tried  to  push  by  to  the  open ;  Coffee  clutched 
at  him  and  clung  to  his  arm.  Sherwin  was  not 
long  in  using  his  opportunity.  In  an  instant  he 
had  gained  the  knife  and  with  quick,  savage  stabs 


282      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

had  three  times  thrust  it  into  the  doctor's  back. 
Hicksey  gasped,  uttered  a  short  cry,  and  fell  back 
limp  and  quivering  on  the  sand. 

At  the  sight  and  the  touch  of  the  hot  blood  on 
his  hands  the  rapid  fury  of  Sherwin's  heart  was 
changed  to  fear.  He  remembered  that  this  that 
he  had  done  was  called  murder  and  that  men 
were  hanged  for  no  worse  a  deed.  He  remem- 
bered with  sudden  anguish  that  there  still  existed 
that  vast  and  powerful  society  which  had  thrust 
him  forth,  which  had  taken  no  thought  for  his 
needs  or  frailties,  but  had  asked  only  that  he 
should  do  its  work,  and  now  once  more  would  put 
forth  hands  to  claim  him,  would  accuse  him  of 
murder,  and  perhaps  in  the  unquestioned  power 
of  its  grip  would  persuade  him  that  he  had  com- 
mitted a  crime  worthy  of  death.  His  whole  na- 
ture protested  at  the  thought.  That  was  a  lie ;  he 
could  never  believe  that.  The  most  primitive  in- 
stincts of  his  manhood  had  prompted  him  to  the 
deed;  it  was  done  and  beyond  regret  or  recall. 
He  would  defy  society  and  live.  Sudden  dread 
of  a  witness  possessed  him;  he  gripped  the  knife 
firmly  in  his  hand  and  looked  across  at  Coffee, 
who  stood  watching  him  from  the  other  side  of 
the  body  of  the  man  he  had  killed.  From  his  face 
he  could  read  nothing;  it  was  blank  and  inscrut- 
able.    Methods  of  escape,  lies  to  be  invented. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   283 

ideas  of  all  colours  flashed  through  his  mind, 
among  others  that  of  killing  Coffee  presented  it- 
self; but  human  gratitude  made  it  impossible  that 
he  should  kill  the  man  who  had  just  saved  his  life. 
If  he  could  implicate  Coffee  that  would  be  his 
safest  plan.  He  suddenly  leapt  upon  him,  seized 
him  by  the  throat,  shook  him  and  forced  him  back- 
ward against  the  wall  of  the  hut.  The  savage 
was  limp  with  terror  in  his  grasp. 

When  Sherwin  saw  that  there  was  no  resist- 
ance left  in  the  man  he  loosed  him  and  let  him 
breathe.  He  then  presented  him  with  the  knife 
and  told  him  to  stab  the  body  of  the  doctor. 

Coffee  was  bewildered.  "That  one  already 
dead  fellow,"  he  protested. 

"Do  as  I  tell  you  and  don't  speak  back  to  me," 
roared  Sherwin,  and  struck  him  on  the  mouth  with 
the  butt  of  the  knife. 

Coffee,  frightened  and  cowed,  did  as  he  was 
commanded;  he  stooped  down  and  three  times 
buried  the  knife  in  the  doctor's  breast. 

Sherwin's  face  expressed  a  savage  satisfaction, 
and  for  a  moment  he  seemed  less  mad  with  rage 
and  fear;  then,  with  a  grip  of  terror,  he  remem- 
bered the  woman  at  the  house.  He  snatched  the 
knife  from  Coffee,  and,  shouting  to  him  to  follow, 
made  off  with  staggering  and  irregular  steps  across 
the  sand-dunes. 


CHAPTER  XX 

AT  the  firing  of  the  first  sho^  Alice  Des- 
mond had  stood  tense  and  quivering. 
That  sound,  that  so  easily  clove  the  still- 
ness and  sent  the  echoes  tumbling  across  the  water, 
shattered  the  last  fragments  of  her  strained  con- 
trol. Like  live,  mad  things  rising  in  her  throat, 
tearing  at  her  breast,  sobs  and  screams  had  their 
way  with  her.  The  loosening  of  so  hard-kept  a 
resistance  was  in  itself  a  relief,  and  the  babbling 
language  of  despair  was  more  tolerable  than  the 
close  scrutiny  of  silent  things,  things  inanimate  in 
the  room  that  cruelly  watched  for  the  nervous 
twitch  of  a  muscle,  or  mocked  at  any  innocent  de- 
ception that  would  suggest  the  appearance  of  calm. 
At  length,  tired  out  and  empty  of  hope  and  energy, 
she  sank  upon  the  floor  sobbing  quietly  to  herself. 
Before  long  she  slept — silence  once  more  rested 
upon  the  house. 

When  she  woke,  it  was  to  hear  a  footstep  on 
the  verandah.  She  raised  herself  in  apprehen- 
sion, then  listened,  motionless.  The  boards  on 
the  verandah   creaked,   then   were  silent.     Her 

heart,  like  a  bird  caught  in  a  net,  was  held  still, 

284 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   285 

uien,  suddenly  breaking  free,  it  fluttered  desper- 
ately in  her  throat.  Again  a  step  sounded  and  a 
hand  was  laid  on  the  knob  of  the  door.  The  next 
moment  Sherwin  had  flung  it  open  and  entered  the 
room.  With  a  short  cry,  that  was  half  a  gasp  for 
breath,  she  leapt  to  her  feet.  White  and  quiver- 
ing she  regarded  him.  There  stood  the  incarna- 
tion of  all  her  terrors;  the  murderer,  gaunt  and 
haggard,  his  clothes  soaked  red  with  the  blood  of 
his  victim.  All  the  devilish  of  our  nature,  let 
loose  to  work  evil,  yet  still  contained  in  human 
form,  was  there.  A  flash  of  knowledge,  a  cer- 
tainty, came  at  the  first  glance  of  his  eyes;  it 
chilled  her  with  an  intenser  dread,  and  drove  out 
all  memory  of  the  past,  all  hope  of  the  future. 
She  saw  in  that  instant  that  the  fear  of  a  witness 
was  on  him.  The  fever  of  killing,  that  lust  of 
the  knife,  still  had  him  gripped.  There  was  mur- 
der written  on  every  feature  of  his  face,  in  the  pose 
of  every  limb,  in  the  come  and  go  of  his  breath,  in 
the  shifting  glance  of  his  eye;  murder  not  yet  ac- 
complished, but  still  threatening  and  immediate. 
Yes,  in  the  power  of  that  desperate  logic  that  fears 
a  witness,  he  would  kill  her,  and  in  the  next  few 
minutes  all  would  be  over.  She  caught  herself 
wondering  where  he  would  plunge  the  knife  on 
whose  hilt  his  fingers  were  now  so  nervously 
twitching.     The  silence  enveloped  them.     In  it 


286      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

she  could  hear  even  the  faint  sound  of  his  blood- 
moist  fingers  tightening  and  loosening  their  grip. 
He  turned  and  deliberately  closed  the  door.  Her 
mouth  was  dry  and  parched ;  all  her  senses,  doubly 
alive  in  this  hour  of  death,  were  fixed  sharp  to 
anticipate  his  smallest  movement.  Swaying  as  he 
moved  he  came  a  step  towards  her.  She  took  a 
corresponding  step  back.  Thus,  facing  each 
other  with  eyes  fixed,  they  moved  across  the  room. 
For  five  steps  she  retreated,  then  her  heel  touched 
the  wall.  She  steadied  herself  with  the  palms  of 
her  hands  flat  against  it  for  support;  with  her 
fingers  she  pressed  fretfully  against  one  of  the 
bevels  of  the  match-boarding.  Standing  upright 
with  shoulders  hunched  and  head  thrown  back  she 
watched  his  approach.  For  a  moment  he  paused, 
and  she  knew  that  his  hand  was  tightening  on  the 
knife.  In  that  moment  of  respite  her  brain  be- 
came vividly  clear.  Images  of  life  and  death,  at 
other  times  mingled,  had  now  disentangled  them- 
selves from  the  web  of  her  thoughts.  She  saw 
them  poised  and  separate,  then  they  rushed  to- 
gether, mingled,  and  again  separated.  In  the 
gulf  between  she  saw  her  own  life,  at  first  pitiful 
and  small,  then  growing  in  importance,  and 
finally,  in  the  swelling  climax  of  its  being,  leaping 
upon  her,  identifying  itself  with  her  own  body, 
claiming  at  all  cost  to  be  saved. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   287 

Her  hands  had  left  the  wall  and  were  now 
clenched  at  her  sides,  the  finger  nails  deep  in  the 
moist  palms.  Like  timid,  diffident  creatures  they 
crept  upwards  towards  her  breast,  to  her  throat, 
to  her  chin.  Her  eyes  strove  with  all  their  shining 
vitality  to  hold  the  man  where  he  stood.  For  a 
while  her  fingers  fumbled  at  the  neck  of  her  dress, 
then  with  a  quick  downward  movement  she  tore 
open  the  neck  of  her  blouse.  Petulantly  she 
snatched  at  the  torn  silk  shreds,  leaving  her  white 
bosom  exposed.  Her  eyes  never  left  the  man's 
face.  As  she  watched,  she  saw  it  go  whiter  even 
than  before,  and  in  his  eyes,  she  read  the  knowl- 
edge that  he  was  conscious  of  the  fluttered  beating 
of  her  heart  and  the  come  and  go  of  her  breath. 
She  raised  her  hands,  covering  her  breasts,  press- 
ing upon  them  with  dimpling  fingers.  Still  the 
man  did  not  move,  only  drew  sharply  his  breath 
between  his  lips.  With  supreme  daring,  as  if 
already  celebrating  her  victory,  she  leaned  back 
her  head  against  the  wall  and  watched  him 
through  half-shut  eyes.  On  his  face  she  read  all 
her  danger.  There  was  written  there  the  sentence 
of  her  death,  her  death  already  accomplished. 
She  saw  that  in  his  imagination  he  had  already 
plunged  in  the  knife.  Might  not  the  picture  of 
the  deed  hide  from  him  her  own  living  body? 
She  saw  that  like  a  mask  it  hung  before  his  eyes. 


288      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

He  came  a  step  nearer;  his  face  was  contorted 
with  the  struggle  of  his  emotions.  In  that  instant 
she  saw  the  turn  of  her  fate.  She  was  saved. 
The  lust  for  the  knife  was  not  so  strong  on  him 
as  the  natural  right  to  hold  and  to  possess.  With 
a  half  cry  he  ran  forward,  letting  the  knife  fall  on 
the  floor  at  his  feet.  She  closed  her  eyes,  and  with 
no  least  thrill  of  repugnance  waited  his  embrace. 
There  was  no  question  of  regretting  the  price 
of  her  victory,  only  gratefulness  that  her  life  was 
safe.  She  felt  his  hands  touch  her,  felt  his  hot 
breath  on  her  face  and  his  eager  kisses.  When 
he  lifted  her  and  carried  her  across  the  room,  she 
was  content  to  believe  herself  in  the  arms  of  her 
true  master  and  mate.  Then  a  throb  of  fear  shot 
through  her  heart,  the  consciousness  of  a  new  dan- 
ger. She  stiffened  herself  in  his  arms,  thrusting 
herself  from  him.  Her  movements  had  in  them 
resistance  but  not  antagonism.  He  was  surprised 
at  the  submission  and  sudden  tenderness  of  her 
withstanding.  It  surely  had  in  it  supplication 
and  not  defiance. 

*'Not  now ;  please  not  now."  The  glance  of  her 
dark  eyes  thrilled  him.  "Think  first  of  your 
safety.  You  must  change  your  clothes;  they  are 
horrible  with  blood." 

He  stood  questioning  her  with  his  glance,  un- 
certain of  her  meaning.     She  leant  toward  him 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   289 

and  whispered:     "Please  let  me  go  now;  later  I 
will  do  anything  that  you  wish." 

His  hands,  that  were  round  her,  unfastened^ 
but,  as  if  afraid  of  her  escaoe,  he  snatched  at  her 
wrist. 

She  spoke  as  if  admonishing  him  for  a  fault, 
guarding  him  from  evil.  "Look  at  the  blood  on 
your  clothes;  your  shirt  is  soaked  with  it.  Go 
and  change  them,  hide  them  away."  Then  sud- 
denly questioning,  anxious  for  certainty:  "Is  he 
dead?"  she  asked. 

"Yes,  he's  dead,  sure  enough.  It  was  him  or 
me  and  fair  fight";  then  suspiciously:  "What 
are  you  driving  at?" 

Her  brain  raced  ahead.  To  find  safety  for  her- 
self, she  must  find  it  for  him  also.  The  new  life, 
the  picture  of  which  she  had  so  suddenly  and 
vividly  seen,  must  stand  on  a  firm  base  of  safety. 
She  flashed  questions  at  him.  "What  will  you 
do  with  the  body?     Where's  Coffee?" 

He  looked  distrustfully  at  her.     "Coffee's 
right;  he  had  a  hand  in  it." 

"Is  there  no  chance  of  his  telling?" 

"No;  Coffee  won't  tell."  Suddenly  he  grabbed 
at  her  again  and  fiercely  drew  her  toward  him. 

"No,  no,  let  me  go,"  she  pleaded,  pushing  with 
her  hands  against  his  chest.  "Not  now;  no,  I 
won't.'^ 


290      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

He  held  her  close  and  glowered  at  her.  *'And 
you;  what  will  you  tell  of  me?"  He  bent  her 
backward,  gripping  her  arms  in  his  strong  hands. 

^'Oh,  you  are  hurting  me!"  she  cried. 

He  gripped  the  tighter,  and  with  his  face  close 
to  hers  again  demanded:  "And  what  about  you ; 
will  you  tell  of  me?" 

She  was  frightened  at  the  fierce  glance  of  his 
eye.     "No,"  she  gasped.     "I  hated  him." 

"Then  give  me  a  kiss." 

She  moved  her  lips  towards  him  and  lay  unre- 
sisting in  his  grasp.  "Let  me  go,  please,"  she 
murmured. 

To  her  surprise  he  relinquished  his  hold.  In 
the  first  embarrassment  of  finding  herself  free  she 
began  to  tidy  her  disarranged  hair  and  dress. 
He  watched  her  in  silence,  wondering  what  she 
would  do. 

He  became,  as  he  watched  her,  unexpectedly 
fascinated  by  the  manner  of  her  movement.  It 
was  is  if,  looking  into  some  crystal,  she  saw  unex- 
pectedly the  true  nature  of  a  human  soul,  of  his 
own  soul  perhaps.  This  woman's  body  had  in  its 
compass  the  magical  power  to  give  him  happiness 
and  faith.  He  saw  her  as  a  man  born  and  nur- 
tured in  the  dark  might  see  a  flower  for  the  first 
time — a  flower  that  opened  a  bold  and  beautiful 
face  fearlessly  to  the  sun,  a  flower  that  was  born 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   291 

of  the  sun's  heat,  was  nourished  by  its  daily  shin- 
ing and  that  died  without  remorse  in  the  natural 
passage  of  the  seasons.  Here  was  a  life  born  of 
the  primitive  earth,  an  expression  of  life,  graceful 
and  mysterious.  It  was  within  his  grasp,  yet 
only  to  be  secured  by  the  sincere  expression  of  his 
nature  and  not  by  any  histrionic  or  over-wrought 
extravagance.  As  he  now  watched  her  she  moved 
without  fear  or  hesitation,  seeming  to  gather  con- 
fidence from  the  directness  of  his  gaze. 

In  these  moments  of  silence  there  grew  between 
them  an  understanding,  a  mutual  antipathy  to- 
ward the  crude  and  the  extravagant.  To  both  of 
them  had  been  shown,  by  virtue  of  their  own  un- 
flinching vitality,  a  way  to  life  renewed  and  re- 
baptized.  Yet  how  could  life  be  possible  without 
convention  and  restraint?  By  one  irreparable 
act,  the  significance  of  which  was  embodied  in  the 
corpse  of  the  dead  man,  they  were  cut  off  from  the 
world;  and  yet,  just  at  that  moment  when  all 
seemed  lost,  life  had  surprised  and  awed  tliem 
with  new  possibilities.  Together  with  the  ac- 
cepted values  of  mankind's  morality  had  fallen 
away  the  cruder  expressions  of  his  brutality,  and 
they  now  confronted  one  another,  man  and 
woman,  in  the  simplicity  of  their  first  mating. 

She  came  towards  him  with  a  diffidence  that 
cleared  away  as  she  spoke.     The  more  urgent 


292      WHERE    BONDS    ARE   LOOSED 

difficulties  and  dangers  of  the  situation  had  all  of 
a  sudden  given  place  to  a  comparative  calm. 

*' Where  is  the  body?"  she  asked. 

^'Dovm  on  the  flat  the  other  side  of  the  hos- 
pital." 

"You  must  bury  it  tonight.  Don't  leave  it  till 
tomorrow.  One  of  the  natives  might  find  it. 
Then  change  your  clothes.  While  you  are  away 
I  will  tidy  the  house  and  make  all  this  straight. 
I  want  time  by  myself." 

"It  will  be  dark  down  there,"  the  man  objected. 
"Why  fret  so  much  about  him?  he's  dead." 

"Never  mind  about  the  dark.  You're  not 
afraid.  I  want  to  feel  that  his  body  is  buried 
and  that  all  that  past  is  done  with.  Have  you 
matches?" 

He  handed  her  a  box  and  she  lit  the  lantern  and 
put  it  into  his  hands.  "Go,  I  will  wait  for  you 
here  till  you  come  back." 

He  looked  at  her  half-suspiciously.  By  going 
he  stood  to  lose  all;  she  might  be  tricking  him. 
But  then,  he  stood  to  win  1  Faith  and  happiness 
were  in  the  balance,  and  self-love,  self-honour 
stirred  with  a  sudden  pulse  of  his  heart.  He 
guessed  from  the  resolute  glance  of  her  eyes  that 
her  instinct  towards  life  was  true  and  that  in  this 
crisis  she  was  handling  it  worthily.  Yes,  he 
would  risk  everything.     It  was  well  worth  while. 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   293 

He  abruptly  turned  to  her.  "I  shall  be  gone 
for  about  an  hour.  I  shall  come  back  here,  and 
in  future  shall  live  in  this  house."  Then,  before 
she  had  time  to  answer,  he  strode  out  into  the 
gathering  darkness. 

The  door  slammed  behind  him  and  Alice  Des- 
mond was  left  staring  at  its  cheap,  ill-built  frame. 
For  a  while  she  stood  listening  to  his  departing 
footsteps.  Then,  as  the  discreet  and  muffling 
silence  of  the  outer  world  crept  in  at  the  open 
window,  she  gave  a  little  shiver  of  fatigue.  She 
remembered  that  she  had  an  intolerable  thirst  and 
went  to  the  canvas  water-bottle  hanging  in  the  ver- 
andah and  drank  deeply.  She  went  to  the  bed- 
room, washed  and  brushed  herself,  arranging  her 
hair  carefully  in  front  of  the  glass.  Then  she 
went  back  to  the  sitting-room  and  began  to  tidy 
the  disorder  of  the  room.  Before  long  she  came 
upon  the  knife.  She  picked  it  up  gingerly,  went 
to  the  open  window  and  threw  it  out.  It  fell  al- 
most noiselessly,  burying  itself  in  the  sand. 

When  all  was  in  order  and  the  supper  laid,  she 
went  out  on  to  the  verandah  and  sat  down  in  the 
long  deck  chair.  She  was  glad  to  rest  passive  and 
to  listen  to  the  quiet  noises  of  the  night.  The  dis- 
tant waves  breaking  on  the  shore,  the  buzz  of  some 
impetuous  insect  against  a  window  pane,  the  occa- 
sional cry  of  a  night-bird  and  the  scuttle  of  walla- 


294      WHERE    BONDS   ARE    LOOSED 

bies  in  the  scrub,  all  these  noises  spoke  to  her  of 
the  sanity  and  well-adjusted  order  of  life.  She 
leant  back,  letting  her  eyes  rest  on  the  dark  and 
distant  line  of  the  horizon.  The  wide  peaceful- 
ness  of  the  sea  caressed  and  hushed  the  land  to 
sleep.  Overhead  the  bright  glitter  of  the  stars 
tempted  her  thoughts  to  stray  among  the  wide 
spaces  of  the  night,  and  be  lost  in  the  knowledge 
of  their  majestic  calm,  of  their  unconcerned  splen- 
dour. 

Not  more  than  a  mile  distant  Sherwin  was  dig- 
ging a  grave.  He  stood  deep  in  the  hole  shovel- 
ling lustily,  and  the  sweat,  which  dropped  from 
his  face,  made  moist  his  uncut  red  hair  that  clung 
in  wisps  to  his  forehead.  He  hummed  to  himself 
broken  catches  of  a  song,  lest  the  solitude  and  the 
strange  character  of  his  work  might  make  him 
afraid.  When  the  hole  was  sufficiently  deep  he 
leapt  out  and  walked  towards  the  lonely  iron  hut 
that  stood,  a  black  mass,  against  the  background 
of  scrub.  He  held  the  lantern  high  that  it  might 
cast  the  better  light. 

The  body  of  Hicksey  was  lying  on  its  back,  the 
white  face  staring  blankly  into  the  yellow  rays  of 
the  lantern.  Sherwin  bent  over  the  dead  man, 
closed  the  vacant  eyes  and  bent  down  the  stiff  arms 
to  his  sides.  At  that  moment  he  had  no  feeling  of 
remorse,  neither  had  he  the  least  shadow  of  vin- 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   29? 

dictiveness  against  his  adversary.  It  had  been  a 
fair  fight;  each  had  carried  his  life  in  his  hands, 
and  by  the  favour  of  fortune  he  had  won.  In 
other  circumstances  he  might  have  been  good 
friends  with  the  young  doctor.  He  had  always 
wished  for  his  friendship,  but  his  offers  had  been 
accepted  too  late.  Now  their  rivalry  had  come 
violently  to  an  end,  and  he  carried  no  grudge  to 
let  fall  into  the  grave.  Holding  the  dead  man  by 
the  shoulders  he  dragged  him  to  the  edge  of  the 
hole  that  he  had  dug,  then,  with  little  ceremony, 
tumbled  him  in.  Quickly  he  shovelled  back  the 
sand.  The  grave  was  deep,  and  here  on  the  flat 
the  wind  was  hardly  likely  to  blow  away  the  sand, 
and  so  disclose  the  remains.  His  task  done,  and 
the  ground  once  more  level,  he  picked  up  his  lan- 
tern, and,  shouldering  his  spade,  walked  away  to- 
wards his  house,  leaving  the  doctor  alone  together 
with  his  dead  hopes,  ambitions,  and  aspirations. 
Sherwin  was  sorry  for  the  dead  man,  in  that  he 
was  no  longer  alive  and  able  to  taste  the  sensuous 
pleasures  of  life ;  he  never  guessed  at  all  the  burn- 
ing hope,  the  faith  in  a  great  purpose  that  was 
buried  there  in  the  tumbled  sand-grave.  He  had 
looked  upon  Hicksey  as  an  energetic,  cold,  un- 
friendly man,  and  he  had  never  seen  the  fanatic 
and  devotee  to  science,  a  man  living  in  the  thought 
of  his  work  and  for  his  work,  who  had  been  side- 


296       WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

tracked  and  thrown  away  on  this  bare  and  deso- 
late island,  destined  to  failure  by  the  love  of  a 
woman  who  was  never  his  mate,  a  woman  who  had 
taught  him  to  hate  and  despise  both  himself  and 
her. 

Sherwin  made  quickly  towards  his  house,  glad 
to  be  done  with  his  task.  A  new  picture  of  life 
was  opening  before  him.  The  thought  of  Alice 
Desmond  thrilled  him  with  warmth  and  pleasure. 
He  marvelled  that  she  should  so  quickly  and 
firmly  get  a  hold  upon  his  heart.  Subconsciously 
he  knew  that  her  instinct  for  life  was  true  and 
admirable,  and  with  satisfaction  he  assured  him- 
self that  she  was  simple  and  easily  understood. 
He  could  see  her  actions  and  motives  in  their  un- 
adorned simplicity;  no  doubt  she  would  under- 
stand him ;  give  him  that  sympathy  he  so  long  had 
needed.  As  he  walked  from  the  grave  of  the  mur- 
dered man,  there  was  in  his  heart  a  song  of  thanks- 
giving and  praise,  a  thankfulness  towards  life  and 
a  keen  anticipation  of  its  new  possibilities.  Hap- 
piness came  thus  unexpectedly,  turning  guilt  to  in- 
nocence, opening  new  channels,  lifting  new  hori- 
zons. The  prospect  of  a  simple  and  satisfying 
life  had  suddenly  shone  for  him  through  all  the 
clouds  of  his  suffering.  The  miracle  of  that  fact 
changed  all  his  immediate  surroundings,  all  his 
thoughts  and  desires.     The  island  scenery  was 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   297 

satisfying  and  full  of  peace.  The  civilization  of 
that  world  which  he  had  left  had  become  a  shadow 
irrelevant  and  meaningless;  here  a  larger  sim- 
plicity ministered  to  his  soul. 

He  found  his  house  dark  and  empty.  He  lit 
all  the  lamps.  A  desire  for  tidiness  and  order 
suddenly  beset  him;  life,  to  be  possible,  must  be 
clothed,  must  have  its  nakedness  adorned.  He 
washed  and  changed  his  clothes,  then  he  brushed 
his  long  hair  that  hung  red  and  shaggy  over  his 
ears.  He  spent  some  time  clipping  his  beard  be- 
fore the  glass.  He  was  interrupted  by  the  ap- 
pearance of  Coffee,  who  was  still  trembling  with 
fear,  haunted  by  the  dread  of  spirits  and  devil- 
devils.  The  black  was  surprised  but  much  re- 
assured by  the  neat  show  that  his  master  made, 
and  hurried  away  in  response  to  the  order  to  bury 
the  clothes  that  lay  discarded  on  the  floor. 

The  fact  that  the  foul  and  blood-stained  evi- 
dences of  his  violence  were  now  being  buried, 
and  that  he  stood  in  his  best  clean  white  suit, 
made  Sherwin  feel  extraordinarily  far  removed 
from  the  crude  emotions  of  his  former  self,  and 
when  he  stepped  out  on  to  the  well-known  path 
that  led  over  the  sand-hill,  it  was  with  a  new  feel- 
ing of  assurance  and  hope. 

As  he  came  in  view  of  the  house,  in  which  Alice 
Desmond  was  waiting  for  him,  his  heart  beat  with 


298      WHERE   BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

a  new  pulse  of  fear.  The  building  seemed  very 
quiet  and  empty.  The  lights  were  burning  in  the 
front  rooms,  but  there  was  no  sound  of  any  sen- 
tient thing.  He  approached  with  long  strides, 
and  not  till  quite  close  did  he  pause  and  listen 
intently.  The  house  raised  itself  in  blank  planes 
against  the  darkness  of  the  night.  All  that  he 
hoped  of  life  was  within  those  silent  and  unpre- 
tentious walls.  He  looked  up  at  the  stars;  they 
seemed  infinitely  remote.  He  knew  not  yet  how 
to  interpret  the  distant  and  numerous  sparkles. 
Were  they  always  to  shine  for  him  with  cruel  in- 
difference, branding  upon  his  soul  his  insignifi- 
cance and  misery?  Or  would  they  perhaps  receive 
significance  from  the  softness  of  a  woman's  sur- 
render and  symbolize,  now  blazing,  now  trembling 
in  abashed  beauty,  the  depths  and  intficacies  of 
life  revealed?  Not  only  the  stars  and  the  night 
sky,  but  all  material  and  spiritual  things  trembled 
and  wavered  before  the  promise  of  faith  and  hap- 
piness, a  faith  that  he  had  staked  all  to  win. 
With  hope  and  fear  struggling  in  his  heart  he 
walked  to  the  steps  that  led  to  the  verandah. 
There  was  a  slight  stir  in  the  darkness  above  him. 
With  two  quick  strides  he  mounted  the  steps,  then 
paused  motionless,  listening  to  his  own  heart  beats 
and  the  quick  breathing  of  the  woman,  who  sat  so 
still  in  the  darkness  not  six  feet  distant.     Her  eyes 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   299 

held  him,  wrapped  him  round,  and  kindled,  in  the 
directness  of  their  gaze,  a  warm  and  flickering 
pain.  She  spoke  no  word,  but  sat  motionless  in 
the  soft  quality  of  the  silence  and  the  night. 

In  two  steps  he  stood  close  to  her,  then  quickly 
bent  down,  and,  with  a  cry  of  mingled  joy  and 
pain,  gripped  her  in  his  arms  and  covered  her  up- 
turned face  with  kisses.  With  a  sob  of  relief  and 
joy  she  flung  her  arms  about  his  neck.  The  night, 
ponderous  and  immense,  bent  above  them  in  an 
arc  of  glittering  stars  which,  in  the  far  distance, 
touched  and  mingled  with  the  restless  and  ever- 
moving  sea. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

NOT  till  some  days  after  the  death  of  Dr. 
Hicksey  did  the  cutter  arrive  at  Kanna 
Island.  Sherwin  reported  that  while 
swimming  far  out  to  sea  Hicksey  had  been  at- 
tacked by  several  large  sharks  and  had  been 
pulled  under.  No  sign  of  his  body  had  yet  ap- 
peared. Any  one  who  had  witnessed  the  doctor's 
recklessness  could  not  have  been  surprised  at  this 
story,  but  would  only  say  with  Pomfrey  that  they 
had  expected  as  much  and  always  had  prophesied 
an  early  death  for  the  young  man. 

The  death  was  ultimately  reported  to  headquar- 
ters, and  an  investigation  was  promised.  This 
investigation  was  no  more  than  a  word  used  in 
official  circles,  and  never  reached  as  far  as  the 
iron  shed  by  the  burying-ground  with  the  smooth 
sand-grave  beside  it.  Mr.  Ke3aies  did,  however, 
visit  the  islands,  and  decided  to  have  the  men's 
hospital  moved  to  Fenton  Island.  He  saw  that 
not  many  men  would  so  lightly  risk  their  lives  in 
a  small  boat  as  Hicksey  had  done,  and  that  the 
objections  to  having  both  hospitals  on  one  island 
could  be  overcome.  In  a  conversation  with  Sher- 
win he  agreed  to  use  Kanna  Island  as  a  small 

300 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   301 

sheep  station,  which,  under  capable  management, 
would  be  sufficient  to  provision  the  hospitals  with 
meat.  Sherwin  was  obviously  the  man  to  put  in 
charge. 

On  Fenton  Island  some  surprise  was  expressed 
at  Nurse  Desmond's  quick  change  of  partners,  but, 
since  she  was  not  present  to  stimulate  their  resent- 
ment or  indignation,  the  subject  soon  lost  interest 
in  the  more  pressing  question  as  to  who  was  to 
be  the  future  head  of  the  hospitals.  In  this 
James's  hopes  were  not  fulfilled;  he  was  passed 
over,  and  a  fully  qualified  man,  together  with  a 
new  matron,  arrived  to  take  the  chief  command. 

So  far  as  the  world  was  concerned,  and  its  im- 
mediate interests  in  Kaimera,  little  more  was  heard 
of  Sherwin.  He  was  a  figure  easily  lost  sight  of 
in  the  advance  of  a  young  colony,  a  colony  press- 
ing forward,  eager  to  assimilate  in  a  few  years  the 
civilization  won  by  Europe  in  centuries  of  strife 
and  toil.  To  the  authorities,  the  only  people  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact,  he  proved  himself  a 
capable  sheep-farmer,  and  was  always  readv  with 
a  supply  of  meat  equal  to  the  demand.  He  never 
asked  for  a  holiday,  or  expressed  any  desire  to 
leave  the  island.  In  the  long  intervals,  during 
which  no  one  visited  Kanna  Island,  he  was  for- 
gotten, and  only  the  sailors,  who  occasionally 
called  with  stores  of  provisions,  wondered  at  the 


302      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

strange  red-headed  man  who  lived  alone  with  his 
woman  in  that  solitary  place,  served  and  shadowed 
by  a  black  and  naked  savage,  whose  inscrutable 
and  ugly  face  betrayed  no  emotion,  gave  no  clue 
to  his  thoughts  or  feelings. 

When  Keynes,  two  years  later,  went  over  to  visit 
the  island,  he  found  a  small  red-headed  baby 
crawling  on  the  verandah  of  the  solitary  iron 
house ;  and  the  back  room,  that  one  time  was  full 
of  Hicksey's  instruments,  was  now  converted  into 
a  nursery.  Keynes,  in  the  course  of  his  life,  had 
come  in  contact  with  many  white  men  who  were 
forced  by  circumstances  to  live  far  from  their 
kind,  and  he  obseved  Sherwin  with  interest.  He 
found  in  him  something,  at  the  same  time,  final 
and  primitive,  something  extraordinarily  free 
and  individual.  No  doubt  that  the  man  was 
happy,  and  had  found  the  harmony  in  life  that  so 
many  hope  for  and  so  few  attain.  Keynes'  inter- 
est was  caught  and  held  by  the  man.  He  thought 
of  his  own  life,  and  guessed  vaguely  that  he  had 
missed  something  which  Sherwin  had  found.  But 
he  too  had  found  happiness,  and  how  else  than  by 
satisfying  his  desire  to  work  and  to  accomplish 
what  other  men  failed  in.  He  had,  besides,  a 
good  conscience,  and  that  was  perhaps  the  secret 
of  the  whole  thing.  In  Sherwin  and  Alice  Des- 
mond he  discerned  the  naivete  and  self-sufficiency 


WHERE  BONDS  ARE  LOOSED   303 

of  wild  animals.  They  were  not,  as  are  human 
beings,  abashed  or  apologetic  for  the  unusualness 
of  any  action,  but  went  their  own  way  with  a  sim- 
ple disregard  for  what  a  stranger  might  think. 
Often  in  the  evening  Sherwin  would  sit  in  the 
dark  shadow  of  the  verandah  and  drink  his  even- 
ing Kava.  Coffee,  who  was  growing  very 
wrinkled  and  surly,  would  sit  beside  him  and 
chew  the  root,  spitting  the  fragments  into  a  bowl 
from  which  they  made  their  common  drink. 
Alice  would  sometimes  come  for  her  share,  but 
generally  she  avoided  Keynes.  She  w^as  shy  and 
retiring  in  his  presence,  though  he  heard  her  talk 
loud  and  volubly  when  alone  with  her  man. 

Keynes's  visit  was  only  of  a  few  days'  duration; 
he  w^as  not  sufficient  master  of  his  own  time  to 
be  able  to  stay  on  and  observe  this  solitary  couple 
for  as  long  as  he  wished.  Sherwin  came  down  to 
the  shore  to  bid  him  farewell.  While  he  was 
waiting  for  the  dinghy  to  pull  in  and  fetch  him 
he  asked':  "And  how  does  this  solitary  life  suit 
you,  cut  off  as  you  are  from  the  world?  Do  you 
never  want  to  go  back  to  the  mainland?" 

"No,  I've  all  I  wish  for  here,"  Sherwin  an- 
swered slowly.  "All  any  man  could  wish  for," 
he  added  after  a  pause.  "I  never  want  to  go 
away,  never  want  to  go  back.  I  like  this  place 
better  than  any  part  I've  set  foot  on." 


304      WHERE    BONDS   ARE   LOOSED 

"Don't  you  feel  lonely  at  times?'' 

"No,  I'm  not  lonely  now  any  longer,  and  what's 
more,  I  can't  understand  how  I  ever  could  have 
been  lonely  here."  Then,  as  if  apologetically,  he 
added:  "I've  learnt  to  see  and  feel  so  many 
things." 

Keynes  was  interested.  "What  sort  of  things  ?" 
he  asked. 

"Oh,  just  little  things;  you  wouldn't  take  much 
stock  by  them ;  the  hot  sun  on  the  sand,  the  noise 
of  the  waves  on  the  shore  and  sometimes  the  feel 
of  the  wind,  and  the  red  and  yellow  butterflies 
clinging  to  the  thorn  bushes." 

Keynes  was  silent  for  a  moment.  "Well,  good- 
bye," he  said,  and  gripped  Sherwin  by  the  hand. 
He  had  a  slight  shudder  at  feeling  there  were 
only  three  fingers.  "I  daresay  I  shall  come  over 
again  in  twelve  months'  time.  I'm  glad  you've 
found  the  job  that  suits  you." 

He  jumped  into  the  dinghy  that  had  just 
grounded  on  the  shore.  Then,  shoving  off,  he  was 
paddled  to  where  the  cutter  waited  for  him. 

Several  times  during  the  slow  passage  from  the 
shore  he  looked  back  on  the  long  irregular  coast  of 
the  island.  He  saw  that  Sherwin  had  climbed  to 
the  top  of  the  high  sand-hill,  and  stood  there,  a 
solitary  figure,  watching  him  out  of  sight. 

THE  END 


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